switchboard

noun

switch·​board ˈswich-ˌbȯrd How to pronounce switchboard (audio)
: an apparatus (as in a telephone exchange) consisting of a panel on which are mounted electric switches so arranged that a number of circuits may be connected, combined, and controlled

Examples of switchboard in a Sentence

She used to work as a switchboard operator.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Telephone callers from across the nation and the world lighted up the hospital’s switchboard until about midnight, asking after the president’s baby and offering medical advice. Steven Levingston, Vanity Fair, 23 Feb. 2026 In a sleepy town, a switchboard operator and a radio DJ investigate a strange audio signal that intercepts the latter’s broadcast. Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 22 Feb. 2026 Around the same time, Bell Telephone hired teenage boys to work as switchboard operators, an obvious recipe for disaster. Arkansas Online, 17 Feb. 2026 The district posts closure notifications on its website, Facebook, X and its main switchboard voicemail at 817-547-5700. Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for switchboard

Word History

First Known Use

1873, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of switchboard was in 1873

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Cite this Entry

“Switchboard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/switchboard. Accessed 5 Mar. 2026.

Kids Definition

switchboard

noun
switch·​board -ˌbō(ə)rd How to pronounce switchboard (audio)
-ˌbȯ(ə)rd
: a device (as in a telephone exchange) consisting of a panel on which are mounted electric switches so arranged that a number of circuits may be connected, combined, and controlled

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