911
English
Etymology 1
Chosen by the United States in the 1960s in place of the older British 999 number as a better way to avoid accidental calls from push-button telephones. It is officially pronounced "nine-one-one," not "nine-eleven," since "nine-eleven" refers to the 2001 attacks in New York and Washington. 9/11 is universally distinguished from 911 and usually refers to the September 11, 2001 attacks. Officially written as 9-1-1 in regulations and materials from the United States National Emergency Number Association and Federal Communications Commission, which is also advocated by some media style guides.
Pronunciation
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˌnaɪn wʌn ˈwʌn/
- Rhymes: -ʌn
Proper noun
911
- The telephone number for emergency services in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Belize, Costa Rica, Argentina, Uruguay, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Liberia, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Anguilla, Palau, and Tonga. [1968]
- 2006 Feb. 3, Graham Linehan, The IT Crowd, Season 1, Episode 2:
- When you call 911 in the United States, a local dispatcher usually answers the phone with "911" or "911. What's your emergency?"
See also
Alternative forms
Coordinate terms
- emergency services
- other short telephone numbers
Noun
911 (countable and uncountable, plural 911s)
- (Canada, US, Belize, Liberia, Philippines, metonymically) Emergency services; emergency service personnel.
- 911 is sending an ambulance.
- (Canada, US, Belize, Liberia, Philippines, colloquial, metonymically) An emergency phone call.
- (Canada, US, Belize, Liberia, Philippines, colloquial, metonymically) An emergency.
Verb
911 (third-person singular simple present 911s, present participle 911ing, simple past and past participle 911ed)
- (Canada, US, Belize, Liberia, Philippines, colloquial) To call emergency services.
- 1997 August, “50 New Fall Hair Looks”, Cosmopolitan, Vol. 223, No. 2, p. 208:
- London hairstylist Rick Haylor for the John Frieda Salon—the man Nicole Kidman 911s when she wants her curly mop to lie down and look glamorous—tells you how to go straight.
- 1997 August, “50 New Fall Hair Looks”, Cosmopolitan, Vol. 223, No. 2, p. 208:
Etymology 2
Selected so as to be able to continue using most of the labelling from its former name 901 after its competitor Peugeot objected that it had the legal rights to 3-digit automotive model names with a central 0 in the French market. The name 901 had been selected since it was the first version of the 6th major design project after the earlier Porsche 356, which the 911 largely replaced. The name is pronounced "nine-eleven" by analogy with German Neunelfer.
Pronunciation
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈnaɪn əˌlɛvən/
Proper noun
911
- (automotive) A prominent family of sports cars manufactured by Porsche. [1964]
Synonyms
- Porsche 911
Hyponyms
Anagrams
French
Pronunciation
Audio: (file)
Proper noun
911 m
Spanish
Proper noun
911 m
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:English/ʌn
- Rhymes:English/ʌn/3 syllables
- English lemmas
- English proper nouns
- English uncountable nouns
- English words without vowels
- English terms spelled with numbers
- English terms with usage examples
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- Canadian English
- American English
- Belizean English
- Liberian English
- Philippine English
- English metonyms
- English colloquialisms
- English verbs
- English terms borrowed from German
- English terms derived from German
- en:Automotive
- English calques
- Hindu-Arabic script
- English 3-syllable words
- English numeronyms
- en:United States
- en:Canada
- en:Mexico
- en:Belize
- en:Costa Rica
- en:Argentina
- en:Uruguay
- en:Ecuador
- en:Saudi Arabia
- en:Egypt
- en:Jordan
- en:Liberia
- en:Ethiopia
- en:Philippines
- en:Anguilla
- en:Palau
- en:Tonga
- en:Emergency services
- en:Law enforcement
- en:Healthcare
- en:Firefighting
- en:Poisons
- en:Telecommunications
- en:Telephony
- en:Automobiles
- en:Nine
- en:One
- French terms with audio pronunciation
- French lemmas
- French proper nouns
- French terms spelled with numbers
- French masculine nouns
- Canadian French
- American French
- fr:Telephony
- Spanish lemmas
- Spanish proper nouns
- Spanish terms spelled with numbers
- Spanish masculine nouns
- United States Spanish
- Mexican Spanish
- Belizean Spanish
- Costa Rican Spanish
- Philippine Spanish
- Argentinian Spanish
- Uruguayan Spanish
- Ecuadorian Spanish
- Dominican Spanish
- es:Telephony