call

The word “call” means to contact someone by phone, or to cry out or shout to get attention. In plain terms, to speak to someone (often by phone), to name something, to visit briefly, or to make a judgment/decision.

“Call” is pronounced kawl (/kɔl/ in IPA).

Here is “call” used in a sentence: “Call me when you get home safely.”

Depending on how it is used, “call” can be a verb and a noun.

The word “call” comes from Old English. From Old English ceallian and Old Norse kalla, both meaning "to call out or shout," from a shared Germanic root.

“Call” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.

“Call” has 6 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: to contact someone by phone, or to cry out or shout to get attention.

'Call' has several senses. Most commonly it means to contact someone by phone. It can also mean to cry out or shout to attract attention, as in 'call for help'. Beyond these, 'call' can mean to name something ('they call him Sam') or to summon a person to come.

To call someone is to reach them by phone for a spoken, real-time conversation. To text is to send a written message they can read and answer whenever they like. A call is immediate and voice-based, while a text is quieter, quicker to send, and does not need both people free at once.

Both can mean raising your voice, but calling is aimed at reaching someone specific — you call out to get a person's attention or bring them to you. Shouting simply means being loud, often from anger, excitement, or distance, and does not always have a particular listener in mind.

You might say, 'I'll call you tonight,' using the phone sense, or 'She had to call out to warn them,' using the shout sense. Both share the idea of reaching another person — one through a device, the other through the voice.