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Synonyms

pager

1 American  
[pey-jer] / ˈpeɪ dʒər /

noun

  1. something, as a book or brochure, having a specified number of pages (usually used in combination).

    Her latest report was a 12-pager.
pager 2 American  
[pey-jer] / ˈpeɪ dʒər /

noun

  1. beeper.

pager British  
/ ˈpeɪdʒə /

noun

  1. a small electronic device, capable of receiving short messages; usually carried by people who need to be contacted urgently (e.g. doctors)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
pager Cultural  

  1. A wireless device that, when activated, signals the bearer to contact either a predetermined party or the party indicated on the device itself. Often called a beeper for the annoying beeps some pagers use to alert their owner.

Etymology

Origin of pager1

First recorded in 1965–70; page 1 + -er 1

Origin of pager2

1965–70; page 2 ( def. ) + -er 1

Explanation

A pager is an electronic device that's used for simple communication between two people. Most pagers beep or vibrate when they receive a message. Once cellphones became commonplace, fewer people used pagers, which are a much simpler communication tool. Most pagers can only receive messages, and many of them are only capable of displaying numbers. If you used a pager during their peak of popularity in the 1990s, you would probably have paged your friend the digits of your phone number; your friend would then have called you on the phone. Today, pagers are still used by emergency services for quick communication.

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He kept a pager clipped to his belt.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026

Whether it was a serious crash, chimney fire or a cow trapped in a pond, when their pager went off, they were first on the scene.

From BBC • Oct. 3, 2025

"Then suddenly, as I was sitting at my desk," he said, "the pager exploded".

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2025

Prominent in his living room, is a picture he framed, of himself, with his injured hands, holding a pager.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2025

Urgent was the only word on his pager.

From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.