as in dialing
to make a telephone call to
she phoned her friend to invite her over for dinner
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of phoning
The receptionist, who refused to give his name, recalled phoning Oakland police at least 10 times in the last six months to report prostitution and trafficking among hotel guests, and said other staff have called dozens of additional times.
—
Jakob Rodgers,
Mercury News,
25 June 2026
There’s a difference, in other words, between doing the work, and phoning it in, just putting in a basic prompt and letting AI come up with, well, whatever.
—
John Werner,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
Trump had lobbied for the plan, making at least two phone calls to Republican state Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey and also phoning in to a private meeting of Republican senators earlier this month.
—
Kim Chandler,
Los Angeles Times,
26 May 2026
Mom was right — phoning it in should never be on the table.
—
Jonathan Bernstein,
Rolling Stone,
13 May 2026
My sister, Louise, had spent hours perfecting the screechy, imperious cry of Starscream, only to use it when phoning the takeaway and ordering curry sauce and chips.
—
Douglas Stuart,
New Yorker,
12 Apr. 2026
Efforts to reach Das and Cooper — including by phoning numbers and sending letters to addresses that appeared to be associated with them — were unsuccessful.
—
David Hilzenrath,
Miami Herald,
9 Apr. 2026
Elordi is barely phoning it in.
—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
9 Apr. 2026
Toilet plumbing problems, email glitches and issues phoning home.
—
Rufina Chow,
NBC news,
3 Apr. 2026
Jakob Rodgers,
Mercury News,
25 June 2026
There’s a difference, in other words, between doing the work, and phoning it in, just putting in a basic prompt and letting AI come up with, well, whatever.
—
John Werner,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
Trump had lobbied for the plan, making at least two phone calls to Republican state Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey and also phoning in to a private meeting of Republican senators earlier this month.
—
Kim Chandler,
Los Angeles Times,
26 May 2026
Mom was right — phoning it in should never be on the table.
—
Jonathan Bernstein,
Rolling Stone,
13 May 2026
My sister, Louise, had spent hours perfecting the screechy, imperious cry of Starscream, only to use it when phoning the takeaway and ordering curry sauce and chips.
—
Douglas Stuart,
New Yorker,
12 Apr. 2026
Efforts to reach Das and Cooper — including by phoning numbers and sending letters to addresses that appeared to be associated with them — were unsuccessful.
—
David Hilzenrath,
Miami Herald,
9 Apr. 2026
Elordi is barely phoning it in.
—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
9 Apr. 2026
Toilet plumbing problems, email glitches and issues phoning home.
—
Rufina Chow,
NBC news,
3 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for phoning
Verb
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At Dave & Buster's Times Square location in New York City, general manager Steve Friedl and his team are dialing up the energy to create the ultimate holiday memories.
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Herbert is dialing back his workload this year.
Verb
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Anonymous tips can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
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Draft an application for a class, outline a travel budget, or research a path that has been calling to you.
Cite this Entry
“Phoning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/phoning. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.
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