noun
phonebook
FOHN-buuk
Phonebook (noun) means a printed or digital directory listing people's or businesses' phone numbers. Example: “We used to look up plumbers in the phonebook.”
noun
1
A printed or digital directory listing people's or businesses' phone numbers.
"We used to look up plumbers in the phonebook."
"One even proposes, in a workaday monotone, that the first hundred people in any Idaho phonebook could do just as well as the legislators at making decisions in the capital."
— Virginia Heffernan, Doing the People's Business, in All Its Somnolent Glory (2007)
How to use phonebook
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA book (or, these days, an app or website) listing phone numbers.
When to use it
Largely a relic of the pre-internet era — most people now search online instead of using a printed phonebook.
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Word forms
- Plural
- phonebooks
- Third person singular
- phonebooks
- Past tense
- phonebooked
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
We used to look up plumbers in the _____.
Etymology
A straightforward compound of "phone" and "book."
Synonyms
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phone book
telephone book
telephone directory
Rhymes for phonebook
See all rhymes for phonebook →Frequently asked questions
What does “phonebook” mean?
The word “phonebook” means a printed or digital directory listing people's or businesses' phone numbers. In plain terms, a book (or, these days, an app or website) listing phone numbers.
How do you pronounce “phonebook”?
“Phonebook” is pronounced FOHN-buuk (/ˈfoʊnˌbʊk/ in IPA).
How do you use “phonebook” in a sentence?
Here is “phonebook” used in a sentence: “We used to look up plumbers in the phonebook.”
What part of speech is “phonebook”?
“Phonebook” is a noun.
