call

1. Hunting any of several notes or patterns of notes, blown on a hunting horn as a signal

2. Hunting

a. an imitation of the characteristic cry of a wild animal or bird to lure it to the hunter

b. an instrument for producing such an imitation

3. Brit the summons to the bar of a student member of an Inn of Court

4. Theatre a notice to actors informing them of times of rehearsals

5. (in square dancing) an instruction to execute new figures

6. Commerce

a. a demand for repayment of a loan

b. (as modifier): call money

7. Billiards a demand to an opponent to say what kind of shot he will play

8. Poker a demand for a hand or hands to be exposed

9. Bridge a bid, or a player's turn to bid

10. Sport a decision of an umpire or referee regarding a shot, pitch, etc.

11. Business on call

a. (of a loan, etc.) repayable on demand

b. available to be called for work outside normal working hours

call

[kȯl]

(computer science)

To transfer control to a specified closed subroutine.

A statement in a computer program that references a closed subroutine or program.

call

(1) In programming, a statement that requests services from another subroutine or program. The call is physically made to the subroutine by a branch instruction or some other linking method that is created by the assembler, compiler or interpreter. The routine that is called is responsible for returning control to the calling program after it has finished processing. See stack.

(2) In communications, the action taken by the transmitting station to establish a connection with the receiving station in a dial-up network.

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