on the telephone

phrase

1

: using a telephone to talk to someone

He came to the door while I was on the telephone.

2

British : connected to a telephone system

the percentage of households on the telephone

Examples of on the telephone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On Tuesday morning, Sage spoke with Fofana on the telephone and attempted to convince him to move to south London instead of Wearside. — Tim Spiers, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026

In 2024, the average wait time on the telephone sometimes approached 40 minutes. — Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 26 July 2026

Babs Osborne, huddled on the telephone in the doorkeeper’s cubicle, was attempting, yet again, to get through to Stanislaus. — Literary Hub, 13 Mar. 2026

When Mom reached Dad on the telephone in the White House pantry to commiserate over the earth-shattering news, Dad’s response was disbelieving. — John Wrory Ficklin, Time, 11 Feb. 2026

Rhymes for on the telephone

• amiodarone
• corticosterone
• hydrocortisone
• phenylbutazone
• acetone
• anglophone
• baritone
• bourguignon
• buspirone
• chaperon
• chaperone
• cobblestone