wake-up call

British  

noun

1. a telephone call that wakes a person from sleep

2. an event that alerts people to a danger or difficulty

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wake-up call Idioms  

1. A portentous event, report, or situation that brings an issue to immediate attention. For example, The rise in unemployment has given a wake-up call to state governments, or The success of the online subscription is a wake-up call to publishers. This metaphoric term originated in the second half of the 1900s for a telephone call arranged in advance to awaken a sleeper, especially in a hotel. Its figurative use dates from about 1990.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

wake-up call

The much-honored “Roots”—which ABC executives ran over eight nights in January 1977, because they thought it was going to bomb—was not only a ratings monster but a wake-up call about slavery in the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026

"It is a wake-up call for the ANC."

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

State regulators have launched an investigation into the incident, and some local officials have called it a wake-up call for communities like Boyle Heights, where homes are sandwiched close to industry and manufacturing districts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2026

"It was a real wake-up call for the US," he says.

From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026

A few weeks later, just after our wake-up call, I heard a sound in the courtyard that made me uneasy: it was the thud of picks and shovels on the ground.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela