plural phones
1
: a device by which sound (such as speech) is converted into electrical impulses and transmitted (as by wire or radio waves) to one or more specific receivers (see receiver sense d(1)) : telephone
Once it was as simple as this. I sat at my desk. The phone rang. I answered it.—Malcolm Gladwell
received a phone call
: such as
a
: a telephone that operates by means of a landline
… the phone is in the front hall; this is an old-fashioned house …—Alice Munro
b
: cell phone
… Dick got a call on his cell phone. Roxy grabbed the phone and answered.—Mary-Anne Olmsted-Kohls
especially
: smartphone
I have set an alert on my phone to make sure I don't forget a friend's birthday … —Mike Vaccaro
2
: a device that converts electrical energy into sound waves and is worn over or inserted into the ear : earphone, headphone
The morning the "Smoking Gun" tape was played, tickets were so scarce that one couple from Kansas City, Mo., doubled up on earphones, she listening to the left, he to the right phone.—Louise Sweeney
… taking off these RHA headphones and placing the Dr. Dre phones on my head, I realized the more expensive headphones did sound somewhat cleaner …—Charlie White
: a speech sound considered as a physical event without regard to its place in the sound system of a language
plural -phones
1
: sound-transmitting device
microphone
radiophone
2
: musical instrument
xylophone
3
: speech sound
homophone
: symbol representing a speech sound
polyphone
4
: speaker of (a specified language)
Francophone
: of or relating to a population that speaks (a specified language)
Francophone
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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