mobile phone

American  

noun

1. any wireless telephone that operates over a relatively large area, as a cell phone or PCS phone.

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mobile phone British  

noun

1. a portable telephone that works by means of a cellular radio system

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Etymology

Origin of mobile phone

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

“The customer was just providing details when her husband came forward and grabbed the mobile phone started argument and cut the call,” a worker had scrawled in looped letters on a preprinted form.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 20, 2026

Following its former mobile phone dominance and transition to telecom equipment, Nokia is now transforming into an optical networks powerhouse with a European advantage, the bank says.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026

"He asked for my mobile phone and checked everything, even my photographs. It was extremely intrusive," she added.

From Barron's • Apr. 1, 2026

Do you have internet access - or just a basic mobile phone?

From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026

Shin fidgeted with the buttons on his mobile phone.

From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden