noun
- Plural of answerphone; electronic devices that record telephone messages when the recipient is unavailable.
Usage: British English; more common in UK than North America; Also called answering machines in American English
Examples
- Many offices have answerphones to handle calls after hours.
- She left a message on their answerphones when no one picked up.
- The company installed new answerphones in all departments.
- Answerphones were essential before mobile phones became widespread.
- He checked his answerphones for any urgent messages.