911
US/ˌnaɪ̯n wən ˈwən/
911 proper noun: 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.
Proper noun (1)
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.
- When you call 911 in the United States, a local dispatcher usually answers the phone with "911" or "911. What's your emergency?"
- After witnessing what was possibly a robbery, she called 911.
Noun
911 (countable and uncountable, plural 911s)
- Emergency services; emergency service personnel.
- 911 is sending an ambulance.
- An emergency phone call.
- An emergency.
Verb
911 (third-person singular simple present 911s, present participle 911ing, simple past and past participle 911ed)
- To call emergency services.
- 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”, in Cosmopolitan, volume 223, number 2, page 208
Proper noun (2)
US/ˈnaɪn əˌlɛvən/
911
- A prominent family of sports cars manufactured by Porsche.
- Synonyms:
- Porsche 911
Examples of 911 in a sentence
- If I see — if I see somebody who doesn't have a mask, I don't call 911.2021 March 18, John Kennedy, quotee, “SEN. JOHN KENNEDY (R-LA) IS INTERVIEWED ON FOX NEWS”, in Political Transcript Wire, Lanham:
- Many still assume that “you call 988 and — much like 911 — that means someone is going to be dispatched to you,” said Hannah Wesolowski, NAMI’s chief advocacy officer.2023 July 13, Christina Caron, “Is the New 988 Suicide Hotline Working?”, in The New York Times:
Synonyms of 911
- Porsche 911
Forms of 911
| Proper noun | |
|---|---|
| alternative form | 9-1-1 |
| alternative form | nine-one-one |
| alternative form | nine one one |
| Noun | |
| plural | 911s |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | 911s |
| present participle | 911ing |
| past participle | 911ed |
| past | 911ed |
Origin of 911
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" and not "nine-eleven;" the latter refers to the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington, but the pronunciation "nine-one-one" for the phone number was universal even prior to the attacks. 9/11 is universally distinguished from 911 to refer the September 11 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.
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.
Phrases with 911
Questions about 911
- What does 911 mean?
- 911 means 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.
- How do you use 911 in a sentence?
- If I see — if I see somebody who doesn't have a mask, I don't call 911.
- What part of speech is 911?
- 911 can be a proper noun, a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce 911?
- 911 is pronounced /ˌnaɪ̯n wən ˈwən/ (US).
Words near 911 in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: 911 (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Cite this entry: “911.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/911. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.