beeper

[ bee-per ]

noun

1. a device that connects into a telephone circuit and transmits a periodic signal as an indication that the conversation over the circuit is being recorded.
2. a similar device attached to a free-ranging animal as an aid to learning its habits; biotelemeter.
3. Also called pager. a pocket-size electronic device whose signal notifies a person of an important message, sometimes displaying the telephone number to be called.

Word History and Origins

Origin of beeper¹

First recorded in 1945–50; beep + -er ¹

Example Sentences

Like, at some point, I wore a beeper that wasn’t even working just because it was part of my look.

From Los Angeles Times

After Hasan weighed in, Girdusky said, “I hope your beeper doesn’t go off” — a reference to the use of mobile communications devices to kill members of Hezbollah in Lebanon on Sept. 17.

From Los Angeles Times

“I keep a beeper with me at all times,” Brown said the day Herzog resigned.

From Los Angeles Times

He kept a photo of tech billionaire Bill Gates’ mansion in his wallet and hustled to make money by selling golf balls he retrieved from a nearby course and pagers and beepers at marked-up prices.

From Los Angeles Times

In college, I wrote a term paper exploring their allure and even interviewed a man who charged a dollar a month to alert subscribers via beeper whenever one started.

From Los Angeles Times