ring

/rɪŋ/ verb (rang, rung)

Definition

› [I or T] (UK also ring up) COMMUNICATIONS to call someone on the phone: If he's out of the office, ring his mobile. I rang a few stockbrokers to see what they would recommend. When someone rings up, we can make provisional approval for a loan within five minutes.ring (sb) about/for sth The price of insurance can depend on when you ring for a quote. → See also call verb

› [I] COMMUNICATIONS if a phone rings, it makes a sound because someone is calling: The phone was ringing. My phone didn't ring all morning.

ring the (cash) register (also (cash) registers are ringing) › used to describe a situation in which there are a lot of sales or a big profit is being made: Consumers are ringing cash registers at a steady pace, incomes are on the rise, and exports are rocketing. Cash registers were ringing across the nation over the Christmas period.

ring off the hook US › COMMUNICATIONS if a phone is ringing off the hook, it rings a lot of times: His phone has been ringing off the hook with calls from people who want him to do work for them.

(Definition of ring verb from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)