The English Oracle

Is "ringing somebody up" exclusive to telephone use in British English?

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Chapters
00:00 Is &Quot;Ringing Somebody Up&Quot; Exclusive To Telephone Use In British English?
00:23 Accepted Answer Score 13
00:55 Answer 2 Score 7
01:23 Answer 3 Score 1
01:37 Thank you

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ACCEPTED ANSWER

Score 13


The Oxford English Dictionary clearly states:

ring: [trans., Brit.] call by telephone

The Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary also says “to make a telephone call to someone”.

Though it's always hard to prove a negative, I've never seen it used for something other than a telephone call, and looking through some recent Google Books excerpts doesn't bring any other use either.


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ANSWER 2

Score 7


It may be localized, but 'ringing someone up' is used in the American mid-atlantic area to refer to the process of tallying someone's purchases at a store, eg:

I can ring someone up in this line. (said by a cashier who is unoccupied)

or

She's ringing someone up right now, but will be with you in a minute. (when you ask to see the manager, and she's occupied.)




ANSWER 3

Score 1


It just means to make a telephone call. It is never used in relation to till operations, in the form "ring up". You might ring up some items, though.