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- Dictionarycall/kɔːl/
verb
- 1. give (a baby or animal) a specified name: "they called their daughter Hannah" Similar namechristenbaptizedesignatestyletermdublabelentitlearchaic:cleperare:denominateanswer to the name ofgo by the name of
- ▪ have a specified name: "she is called Eva"
- ▪ address or refer to (someone) by a specified name, title, etc.: "please call me Bob"
- ▪ refer to or consider (someone or something) as being: "he's the only person I would call a friend" Similar describe asregard aslook on asconsider to bejudge to bethink of asclass ascategorize as
- 2. cry out (a word or words): "he heard an insistent voice calling his name" Similar cry outcryshoutyellsing outwhoopbellowroarhalloobawlscreamshriekscreechexclaiminformal:holleryoo-hoocooeerare:ejaculatevociferate
- ▪ cry out to (someone) in order to summon them or attract their attention: "she heard Terry calling her" Similar cry outcryshoutyellsing outwhoopbellowroarhalloobawlscreamshriekscreechexclaiminformal:holleryoo-hoocooeerare:ejaculatevociferate
- ▪ (of an animal, especially a bird) make its characteristic cry: "overhead, a skylark called"
- ▪ shout out or chant (the steps and figures) to people performing a square dance or country dance.
- ▪ make (a particular bid) during the auction: "her partner called 6♠"
- ▪ claim (a specified privilege) for oneself, typically by shouting out a particular word or set phrase: informal North American "I call first dibs on the bathroom"
- 3. contact or attempt to contact (a person or number) by phone: "could I call you back?" Similar phonetelephoneget on the phone toget someone on the phonedialmake/place a call togetreachring upringgive someone a ringinformal:call upgive someone a callgive someone a buzzbuzzgive someone a bellbellgive someone a tinkleget on the blower toget someone on the horn
- ▪ use a phone to summon (someone or something, especially an emergency service or a taxi): "her husband called an ambulance" Similar summonsend forask fororderpage
- 4. order or request the attendance of: "representatives of all three teams have been called to appear before the Monaco stewards"
- ▪ bring (a witness) into court to give evidence: "four expert witnesses were called"
- ▪ draw critical attention to someone's unacceptable actions or behaviour: North American "she called him on his claim that the media were doing a bad job of covering the economy"
- ▪ cause (someone) to have a strong urge to choose a particular career or way of life: "he was called to the priesthood"
- 5. announce or decide that (an event, especially a meeting, election, or strike) is to happen: "there appeared to be no alternative but to call a general election" Similar convenesummoncall togetherorderassemblearrangearrange a time/date forannouncedeclareformal:convoke
- 6. (of a person) pay a brief visit: British "I've got to call at the bank to get some cash"
- ▪ (of a train or coach) stop at (a specified station or stations) on a particular route: "the 8.15 service to Paddington, calling at Reading"
- 7. (of an umpire or other official in a game) pronounce (a ball, stroke, etc.) to be the thing specified: "the linesman called the ball wide"
- ▪ (of an umpire) declare (a bowler) to have bowled a no-ball: "he was called for throwing in the match against Hampshire"
- ▪ predict the result of (a future event, especially an election or a vote): "in the Midlands the race remains too close to call"
- ▪ guess (the outcome) of tossing a coin: "Burnley called heads and won the toss"
- 8. cause (a subroutine) to be executed: "one subroutine may call another subroutine (or itself)"
noun
- 1. a cry made as a summons or to attract someone's attention: "a nearby fisherman heard their calls for help" Similar cryshoutyellwhooproarscreamshriekexclamationinformal:hollerrare:vociferation
- ▪ a series of notes sounded on a brass instrument as a signal to do something: "a bugle call to rise at 8.30"
- ▪ a direction in a square dance given by the caller.
- ▪ a bid, response, or double: "the alternative call of 2♠ would be quite unsound"
- 2. the characteristic cry of a bird or other animal: "it is best distinguished by its call, a loud ‘pwit’" Similar crysongsound
- ▪ a device used to imitate the cry of a particular bird or other animal: "turkeys in the wild don't sound like most turkey calls"
- 3. an instance of speaking to someone on the phone or attempting to contact someone by phone: "I'll give you a call at around five" Similar phone calltelephone callringinformal:buzzbelltinkle
- 4. a brief visit, especially one made for social reasons: "we paid a call on Ben and his family" Similar visitsocial call
- ▪ a visit or journey made by a doctor or other professional in response to a request for help, especially in an emergency situtation: "the ambulance is out on a call"
- 5. an appeal or demand for something to happen or be done: "the call for action was welcomed" Similar appealrequestpleaentreatydemandordercommand
- ▪ demand, need, or reason for: "there is little call for antique furniture" Similar neednecessityoccasionreasonjustificationgroundsexcusepretextcausedemanddesirewantrequirementneedmarket
- 6. an order or request for someone to be present: "he was delighted that so many former players had heeded the call to attend the conference" Similar summonsrequest
- ▪ a vocation: "feeling the call to ministry, I started looking for a Bible college"
- ▪ a powerful force of attraction: "walkers can't resist the call of the Cairngorms" Similar attractionappeallureallureallurementfascinationseductivenessmagicbeautyspellpulldraw
- 7. (in sport) a decision or ruling made by an umpire or other official, traditionally conveyed by a shout, that the ball has gone out of play or that a rule has been breached: "he was visibly irritated with the umpire's calls"
- ▪ a decision, judgement, or prediction: "personally, I'm all in favour, but it's your call"
- 8. a command to execute a subroutine: "parameter values may be changed by calls to a special purpose input specification subroutine"
- 9. a demand for payment of lent or unpaid capital.
- ▪ short for call option
- 10. (in a bar, club, etc.) denoting or made with relatively expensive brands of alcohol which customers request by name. US "try wines by the glass for $5, beer for $3, and call drinks for $8"
Word Origin late Old Englishceallian, from Old Norse kalla ‘summon loudly’.
Scrabble Points: 6
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