call noun

1 on the telephone

ADJ. phone/telephone | long | quick, short I'll just make a quick phone call. | local | international, long-distance, trunk | direct-dialled | incoming | outgoing | emergency | anonymous, hoax, nuisance, obscene, unsolicited | wake-up I ordered a wake-up call for 6.30 the next morning.

(figurative) Last night's defeat should be a wake-up call for the team.

VERB + CALL give sb, make, place Give us a call to say when you have arrived. She asked her secretary to place a call through to England. | get, have, receive | answer, take I'll take the call upstairs. | return I left a message but he didn't return my call. | put through, transfer Ask the receptionist to put your call through to my room.

CALL + NOUN box

PREP. ~ for Were there any calls for me while I was out? | ~ from You had a call from Fred. | ~ to I made a call to a friend in London.

2 sound to attract attention

ADJ. loud | distinctive the distinctive call of the cuckoo | plaintive the bird's plaintive call | distress | bird | clarion, rallying (both figurative) This election is a clarion call for our country to face the challenges of the new era.

VERB + CALL let out | hear

PREP. ~ for a call for help

3 short visit

ADJ. business, courtesy, social

VERB + CALL make, pay (sb) The doctor has several calls to make this morning.

PREP. on a ~ She's out on a call. | ~ on Her first call was on the local library.

PHRASES first/last/next port of call Our first port of call (= the first place we went to) was the chemist's.

4 request/demand

ADJ. renewed, repeated | last This is the last call for passengers travelling on British Airways flight 199 to Rome. | strike

VERB + CALL issue | renew Drink-drive campaigners have renewed their call for the introduction of random breath tests. | answer, heed, respond to Around 10,000 workers heeded the union's strike call. | reject

PREP. ~ for The charity issued a call for donations to assist victims of the earthquake.

PHRASES a call to arms (= a strong request for people to fight in the army) (figurative) The president's speech was a call to arms to restore the vitality of the American dream.

call verb

ADV. commonly | originally | collectively a range of very small organisms, collectively called nanoplankton | variously a plant variously called ‘cow parsley’ and ‘Queen Anne's lace’ | aptly | quaintly | euphemistically The prison is euphemistically called a ‘rehabilitation centre’.

PREP. by We usually call him by his nickname.

You can also check other dicts: call (English, 中文解释 ), wordnet sense, Collins Definition

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