collect call

American  

noun

1. a long-distance telephone call that is to be paid for by the person or station receiving it.

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Etymology

Origin of collect call

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

An art project called the Goodbye Line prompts passersby to make a collect call and say goodbye — to a loved one, a pet or maybe a part of themselves.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 4, 2026

A teaser for director Geno McDermott’s film opens with chilling audio of a collect call Hernandez made to his fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 20, 2019

At long last, my client was allowed to make a tearful, five-minute collect call to his wife, in which he confirmed that he was alive and that he would be deported the next day.

From Slate • Apr. 2, 2017

It has been almost two weeks, and he still will not even answer the phone, possibly a collect call from Stockholm.

From Washington Post • Oct. 27, 2016

Tex took me to a phone booth and I dialed zero and told the operator the number and yes, this was a collect call.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

Related Words

• local call
• long-distance call
• phone call
• telephone conversation