Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Call \Call\ (k[add]l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Called} (k[add]ld);
   p. pr. & vb. n. {Calling}] [OE. callen, AS. ceallian; akin to
   Icel. & Sw. kalla, Dan. kalde, D. kallen to talk, prate, OHG.
   kall[=o]n to call; cf. Gr. ghry`ein to speak, sing, Skr. gar
   to praise. Cf. {Garrulous}.]
   1. To command or request to come or be present; to summon;
      as, to call a servant.

            Call hither Clifford; bid him come amain --Shak.

   2. To summon to the discharge of a particular duty; to
      designate for an office, or employment, especially of a
      religious character; -- often used of a divine summons;
      as, to be called to the ministry; sometimes, to invite;
      as, to call a minister to be the pastor of a church.

            Paul . . . called to be an apostle    --Rom. i. 1.

            The Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul
            for the work whereunto I have called them. --Acts
                                                  xiii. 2.

   3. To invite or command to meet; to convoke; -- often with
      together; as, the President called Congress together; to
      appoint and summon; as, to call a meeting of the Board of
      Aldermen.

            Now call we our high court of Parliament. --Shak.

   4. To give name to; to name; to address, or speak of, by a
      specifed name.

            If you would but call me Rosalind.    --Shak.

            And God called the light Day, and the darkness he
            called Night.                         --Gen. i. 5.

   5. To regard or characterize as of a certain kind; to
      denominate; to designate.

            What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.
                                                  --Acts x. 15.

   6. To state, or estimate, approximately or loosely; to
      characterize without strict regard to fact; as, they call
      the distance ten miles; he called it a full day's work.

            [The] army is called seven hundred thousand men.
                                                  --Brougham.

   7. To show or disclose the class, character, or nationality
      of. [Obs.]

            This speech calls him Spaniard.       --Beau. & Fl.

   8. To utter in a loud or distinct voice; -- often with off;
      as, to call, or call off, the items of an account; to call
      the roll of a military company.

            No parish clerk who calls the psalm so clear. --Gay.

   9. To invoke; to appeal to.

            I call God for a witness.             --2 Cor. i. 23
                                                  [Rev. Ver. ]

   10. To rouse from sleep; to awaken.

             If thou canst awake by four o' the clock. I prithee
             call me. Sleep hath seized me wholly. --Shak.

   {To call a bond}, to give notice that the amount of the bond
      will be paid.

   {To call a party} (Law), to cry aloud his name in open court,
      and command him to come in and perform some duty requiring
      his presence at the time on pain of what may befall him.
      

   {To call back}, to revoke or retract; to recall; to summon
      back.

   {To call down}, to pray for, as blessing or curses.

   {To call forth}, to bring or summon to action; as, to call
      forth all the faculties of the mind.

   {To call in},
       (a) To collect; as, to call in debts or money; ar to
           withdraw from cirulation; as, to call in uncurrent
           coin.
       (b) To summon to one's side; to invite to come together;
           as, to call in neighbors.

   {To call (any one) names}, to apply contemptuous names (to
      any one).

   {To call off}, to summon away; to divert; as, to call off the
      attention; to call off workmen from their employment.

   {To call out}.
       (a) To summon to fight; to challenge.
       (b) To summon into service; as, to call out the militia.
           

   {To call over}, to recite separate particulars in order, as a
      roll of names.

   {To call to account}, to demand explanation of.

   {To call to mind}, to recollect; to revive in memory.

   {To call to order}, to request to come to order; as:
       (a) A public meeting, when opening it for business.
       (b) A person, when he is transgressing the rules of
           debate.

   {To call to the bar}, to admit to practice in courts of law.
      

   {To call up}.
       (a) To bring into view or recollection; as to call up the
           image of deceased friend.
       (b) To bring into action or discussion; to demand the
           consideration of; as, to call up a bill before a
           legislative body.

   Syn: To name; denominate; invite; bid; summon; convoke;
        assemble; collect; exhort; warn; proclaim; invoke;
        appeal to; designate.

   Usage: {To Call}, {Convoke}, {Summon}. Call is the generic
          term; as, to call a public meeting. To convoke is to
          require the assembling of some organized body of men
          by an act of authority; as, the king convoked
          Parliament. To summon is to require attendance by an
          act more or less stringent anthority; as, to summon a
          witness.

Call \Call\, n.
   1. The act of calling; -- usually with the voice, but often
      otherwise, as by signs, the sound of some instrument, or
      by writing; a summons; an entreaty; an invitation; as, a
      call for help; the bugle's call. ``Call of the trumpet.''
      --Shak.

            I rose as at thy call, but found thee not. --Milton.

   2. A signal, as on a drum, bugle, trumpet, or pipe, to summon
      soldiers or sailors to duty.

   3. (Eccl.) An invitation to take charge of or serve a church
      as its pastor.

   4. A requirement or appeal arising from the circumstances of
      the case; a moral requirement or appeal.

            Dependence is a perpetual call upon humanity.
                                                  --Addison.

            Running into danger without any call of duty.
                                                  --Macaulay.

   5. A divine vocation or summons.

            St. Paul himself believed he did well, and that he
            had a call to it, when he persecuted the Christians.
                                                  --Locke.

   6. Vocation; employment.

   Note: [In this sense, calling is generally used.]

   7. A short visit; as, to make a call on a neighbor; also, the
      daily coming of a tradesman to solicit orders.

            The baker's punctual call.            --Cowper.

   8. (Hunting) A note blown on the horn to encourage the
      hounds.

   9. (Naut.) A whistle or pipe, used by the boatswain and his
      mate, to summon the sailors to duty.

   10. (Fowling) The cry of a bird; also a noise or cry in
       imitation of a bird; or a pipe to call birds by imitating
       their note or cry.

   11. (Amer. Land Law) A reference to, or statement of, an
       object, course, distance, or other matter of description
       in a survey or grant requiring or calling for a
       corresponding object, etc., on the land.

   12. The privilege to demand the delivery of stock, grain, or
       any commodity, at a fixed, price, at or within a certain
       time agreed on. [Brokers' Cant]

   13. See {Assessment}, 4.

   {At call}, or {On call}, liable to be demanded at any moment
      without previous notice; as money on deposit.

   {Call bird}, a bird taught to allure others into a snare.

   {Call boy}
       (a) A boy who calls the actors in a theater; a boy who
           transmits the orders of the captain of a vessel to
           the engineer, helmsman, etc.
       (b) A waiting boy who answers a cal, or cames at the
           ringing of a bell; a bell boy.

   {Call note}, the note naturally used by the male bird to call
      the female. It is artificially applied by birdcatchers as
      a decoy. --Latham.

   {Call of the house} (Legislative Bodies), a calling over the
      names of members, to discover who is absent, or for other
      purposes; a calling of names with a view to obtaining the
      ayes and noes from the persons named.

   {Call to the bar}, admission to practice in the courts.

Call \Call\, v. i.
   1. To speak in loud voice; to cry out; to address by name; --
      sometimes with to.

            You must call to the nurse.           --Shak.

            The angel of God called to Hagar.     --Gen. xxi.
                                                  17.

   2. To make a demand, requirement, or request.

            They called for rooms, and he showed them one.
                                                  --Bunyan.

   3. To make a brief visit; also, to stop at some place
      designated, as for orders.

            He ordered her to call at the house once a week.
                                                  --Temple.

   {To call for}
      (a) To demand; to require; as, a crime calls for
          punishment; a survey, grant, or deed calls for the
          metes and bounds, or the quantity of land, etc., which
          it describes.
      (b) To give an order for; to request. ``Whenever the coach
          stopped, the sailor called for more ale.'' --Marryat.
          

   {To call on}, {To call upon},
      (a) To make a short visit to; as, call on a friend.
      (b) To appeal to; to invite; to request earnestly; as, to
          call upon a person to make a speech.
      (c) To solicit payment, or make a demand, of a debt.
      (d) To invoke or play to; to worship; as, to call upon
          God.

   {To call out} To call or utter loudly; to brawl.

Source : WordNet®

call
     n 1: a telephone connection; "she reported several anonymous
          calls"; "he placed a phone call to London"; "he heard
          the phone ringing but didn't want to take the call"
          [syn: {phone call}, {telephone call}]
     2: a special disposition (as if from a divine source) to pursue
        a particular course; "he was disappointed that he had not
        heard the Call"
     3: a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition; "the
        speaker was interrupted by loud cries from the rear of the
        audience" [syn: {cry}, {outcry}, {yell}, {shout}, {vociferation}]
     4: a demand especially in the phrase "the call of duty" [syn: {claim}]
     5: the characteristic sound produced by a bird; "a bird will
        not learn its song unless it hears it at an early age"
        [syn: {birdcall}, {birdsong}, {song}]
     6: a brief social visit; "senior professors' wives no longer
        make afternoon calls on newcomers"
     7: a demand by a broker that a customer deposit enough to bring
        his margin up to the minimum requirement [syn: {margin
        call}]
     8: a demand for a show of hands in a card game; "after two
        raises there was a call"
     9: a request; "many calls for Christmas stories"; "not many
        calls for buggywhips"
     10: an instruction that interrupts the program being executed;
         "Pascal performs calls by simply giving the name of the
         routine to be executed"
     11: brief visit in an official or professional capacity; "the
         pastor's visits to his parishioners"; "a visit to a
         dentist"; "the salesman's call on a customer"
     12: (sports) the decision made by an umpire or referee; "he was
         ejected for protesting the call"
     13: the option to buy a given stock (or stock index or commodity
         future) at a given price before a given date [syn: {call
         option}] [ant: {put option}]

call
     v 1: assign a specified, proper name to; "They named their son
          David"; "The new school was named after the famous Civil
          Rights leader" [syn: {name}]
     2: get or try to get into communication (with someone) by
        telephone; "I tried to call you all night"; "Take two
        aspirin and call me in the morning" [syn: {telephone}, {call
        up}, {phone}, {ring}]
     3: ascribe a quality to or give a name of a common noun that
        reflects a quality; "He called me a bastard"; "She called
        her children lazy and ungrateful"
     4: order, request, or command to come; "She was called into the
        director's office"; "Call the police!" [syn: {send for}]
     5: utter a sudden loud cry; "she cried with pain when the
        doctor inserted the needle"; "I yelled to her from the
        window but she couldn't hear me" [syn: {shout}, {shout out},
         {cry}, {yell}, {scream}, {holler}, {hollo}, {squall}]
     6: pay a brief visit; "The mayor likes to call on some of the
        prominent citizens" [syn: {visit}, {call in}]
     7: call a meeting; invite or command to meet; "The Wannsee
        Conference was called to discuss the `Final Solution'";
        "The new dean calls meetings every week"
     8: order or request or give a command for; "The unions called a
        general strike for Sunday"
     9: order, summon, or request for a specific duty or activity,
        work, role; "He was already called 4 times for jury duty";
        "They called him to active military duty"
     10: indicate a decision in regard to; "call balls and strikes
         behind the plate"
     11: stop or postpone because of adverse conditions, such as bad
         weather; "call a football game"
     12: read aloud to check for omissions or absentees; "Call roll"
     13: send a message or attempt to reach someone by radio, phone,
         etc.; make a signal to in order to transmit a message;
         "Hawaii is calling!"; "A transmitter in Samoa was heard
         calling"
     14: declare in the capacity of an umpire or referee; "call a
         runner out"
     15: utter a characteristic note or cry; "bluejays called to one
         another"
     16: utter in a loud voice or announce; "He called my name"; "The
         auctioneer called the bids"
     17: make a prediction about; tell in advance; "Call the outcome
         of an election" [syn: {predict}, {foretell}, {prognosticate},
          {forebode}, {anticipate}, {promise}]
     18: challenge (somebody) to make good on a statement; charge
         with or censure for an offense; "He deserves to be called
         on that"
     19: consider or regard as being; "I would not call her
         beautiful"
     20: demand payment of (a loan); "Call a loan" [syn: {call in}]
     21: give the calls (to the dancers) for a square dance [syn: {call
         off}]
     22: greet, as with a prescribed form, title, or name; "He always
         addresses me with `Sir'"; "Call me Mister"; "She calls
         him by first name" [syn: {address}]
     23: make a stop in a harbour; "The ship will call in Honolulu
         tomorrow"
     24: make a demand, as for a card or a suit or a show of hands;
         "He called his trump" [syn: {bid}]
     25: require the presentation of for redemption before
         maturation; "Call a bond"
     26: lure by imitating the characteristic call of an animal;
         "Call ducks"
     27: challenge the sincerity or truthfulness of; "call the
         speaker on a question of fact"
     28: rouse somebody from sleep with a call; "I was called at 5
         A.M. this morning"