landline

land·line | \ ˈland-ˌlīn

variants: or less commonly land line

Definition of landline

1 : a line of transportation or communication on land especially : a telephone line that transmits signals from one station to another directly along a wire without the use of radio waves It reminds me of the tipping point several years ago when people realized they no longer needed a telephone landline and would do just fine with their cell phones. — Rana Foroohar —often used before another noun a landline phone a landline network

2 : a telephone that connects by wire : a landline telephone Of course, if you're really worried, you could ditch your cell phone for a quaint landline.— Kiera Butler

Examples of landline in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The first crude cameraphone transmitted images in 1927; by the 1960s, AT&T previewed a fully functioning landline videophone, purveying live imaging two ways. — Richard Cooke, The New Republic, "The Perpetual Disappointment of Remote Work," 4 Jan. 2021 Phyllis Little, the director of emergency management in Cullman County, had no internet or landline connection in her office. — New York Times, "When Nashville Bombing Hit a Telecom Hub, the Ripples Reached Far Beyond," 29 Dec. 2020 Police departments posted landline numbers on their social media accounts to provide access for those seeking emergency services. — Haley Victory Smith, Washington Examiner, "Nashville's Christmas explosion: What we know so far," 26 Dec. 2020 Utility regulators have reinstated a moratorium on the disconnection of electricity, natural gas and landline phone services because customers have not paid their bills. — From Usa Today Network And Wire Reports, USA TODAY, "Vaccine freezer, Christmas cheer, Iditarod trail switch: News from around our 50 states," 24 Dec. 2020 The family’s connection to a telephone landline has yet to be repaired, and cellular reception in the area is weak. — Donovan Brink, oregonlive, "Two months after Archie Creek fire, a miracle ending for Steamboat Inn ‘kitty’ who fled into woods," 12 Nov. 2020 Maintenance of landline phones typically requires one technician for every 500 phones. — Aarefa Johari, Quartz India, "“They want to let BSNL die”: The rot inside India’s government-owned telecom firms," 22 Nov. 2020 In the future, everything will be a battery, and stand-alone energy storage will seem as quaint as landline telephones and portable CD players. — Daniel Oberhaus, Wired, "The Batteries of the Future Are Weightless and Invisible," 6 Nov. 2020 It’s an old-school store with no computer system, just a landline phone and a long reputation with the locals. — Jamie Swinnerton, Chron, "Woodlands business donates new floor to Candy House," 2 Dec. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'landline.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.