voice mail

American

[vois-meyl] / ˈvɔɪsˌmeɪl /

Or voicemail

noun

an electronic system enabling the recording and storage of (usually digitized) voice messages, which can subsequently be retrieved by the intended recipient.

voice mail British

noun

an electronic system for the transfer and storage of telephone messages, which can then be dealt with by the user at his or her convenience

"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

Other Word Forms

voice-mail adjective

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.

Calls from numbers that aren’t in your contacts list will now be muted and sent directly to voice mail.

From New York Times • Mar. 13, 2024

And like anybody having to listen to their voice on a voice mail, trying to get past the criticism of myself.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 22, 2024

The voice mail was full and not taking messages.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 22, 2023

One such feature, he said, will be the iPhone's ability to transcribe voice mail messages in real time, starting this autumn.

From Reuters • Aug. 3, 2023

I called Mom’s cell phone and got her voice mail.

From "Auggie & Me" by R. J. Palacio

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