Use the word "call" as a noun or as a verb when communicating with another person by phone or in person.
In this first set of examples, "call" is a noun for telephone technology:
I got a phone call.
I have to take this call.
Shondra received a call for a job interview.
Lester is trying to make a call.
It’s not a good idea to take a call while you are driving a car. (take a call = answer the phone)
You can also use "call" as a verb that describes the action of taking or making a phone call:
Call me when you get home.
Your mother called to say she has some good news.
Who are you calling? (Or you can use "whom" in this question because it’s an object.)
Who called? ("Who" is the subject.)
Has anyone called about the car?
There are many different circumstances under which the word "call" is used:
The teacher called on Rosa to answer the question.
Bill feels a calling to help those who are less fortunate than he is. (a calling = a spiritual motivation)
Mohamed has to keep his eye on his cell phone tonight because he’s on call. (on call = available immediately as part of one’s job.)
Volunteer fire fighters are on call 24/7. (24/7 = 24 hours a day, seven days a week)
Salespeople often have to make cold calls as part of their job. (cold call = a phone call or personal visit made in order to sell something to a customer)
Sandy works as a call girl. (call girl = female escort who is paid to have a relationship with a man)
Saritha works at a call center. (call center = a place that takes phone calls from customers)
What is this called? (What is the name of the this thing?)
A soldier answers the call of duty. (call of duty = to sacrifice oneself for a cause)
He called her a name. (call a name = to say something mean about another person)
