call on
verb
called on; calling on; calls on
1
: to call upon
Is there anyone you can call on in an emergency?
2
: to elicit a response from (someone, such as a student)
the teacher called on her first
3
US, informal
: to directly criticize (someone) for (something, such as bad behavior)
She's incredibly rude, but no one ever calls her on it.
Examples of call on in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Nevertheless, Pérez said, ICE has called on local law enforcement agencies to keep members of the public who have a right to monitor or document ICE activities from doing so.
—
Linh Tat, Daily News, 17 Feb. 2026
Europe’s competitiveness is at stake if compliance becomes too burdensome, and in an Antwerp meeting last week, industry leaders called on the European Commission to continue supporting this kind of regulatory relief.
—Tara Donaldson, Vogue, 16 Feb. 2026
North Texas Muslim leaders are calling on public officials to speak out after a man spewing anti-Islamic slurs harassed a group praying at a park in Plano.
—Sarah Bahari, Dallas Morning News, 16 Feb. 2026
English coastguards received a call on Sunday morning about the incident the previous evening, according to a Facebook post by HM Coastguard Southend.
—Lianne Kolirin, CNN Money, 16 Feb. 2026
Public Act 23-167, passed in 2023, called on schools to begin implementing restorative justice practices — the goal being to address problematic student behavior without resorting to punitive measures like suspension.
—Theo Peck-Suzuki, Hartford Courant, 15 Feb. 2026
Firefighters responding to a 911 call on Wednesday walked along the hallway looking for the source.
—Peter Hermann, Washington Post, 14 Feb. 2026
On Friday, Monks called on Idaho residents to help address these problems — by joining in a day of prayer and fasting on Sunday, March 1.
—Sarah Cutler, Idaho Statesman, 14 Feb. 2026
The move followed a memorandum from the White House calling on the CDC to cull the schedule.
—Amanda Seitz, NPR, 13 Feb. 2026
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Linh Tat, Daily News, 17 Feb. 2026
Europe’s competitiveness is at stake if compliance becomes too burdensome, and in an Antwerp meeting last week, industry leaders called on the European Commission to continue supporting this kind of regulatory relief.
—Tara Donaldson, Vogue, 16 Feb. 2026
North Texas Muslim leaders are calling on public officials to speak out after a man spewing anti-Islamic slurs harassed a group praying at a park in Plano.
—Sarah Bahari, Dallas Morning News, 16 Feb. 2026
English coastguards received a call on Sunday morning about the incident the previous evening, according to a Facebook post by HM Coastguard Southend.
—Lianne Kolirin, CNN Money, 16 Feb. 2026
Public Act 23-167, passed in 2023, called on schools to begin implementing restorative justice practices — the goal being to address problematic student behavior without resorting to punitive measures like suspension.
—Theo Peck-Suzuki, Hartford Courant, 15 Feb. 2026
Firefighters responding to a 911 call on Wednesday walked along the hallway looking for the source.
—Peter Hermann, Washington Post, 14 Feb. 2026
On Friday, Monks called on Idaho residents to help address these problems — by joining in a day of prayer and fasting on Sunday, March 1.
—Sarah Cutler, Idaho Statesman, 14 Feb. 2026
The move followed a memorandum from the White House calling on the CDC to cull the schedule.
—Amanda Seitz, NPR, 13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Call on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/call%20on. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.
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