voice mail

noun
1.
an electronic system enabling the recording and storage of (usually digitized) voice messages, which can subsequently be retrieved by the intended recipient.
Related forms
voice-mail, adjective
Examples from the web for voice mail
  • The first is that of a salesman getting his messages from a voice mail system.
  • Simply call into your voice mail system as a remote caller and follow the voice mail prompts to retrieve your messages.
  • Several phone clerks transferred him straight to voice mail.
  • It's the visual voice mail, co-developed with their mobile-phone partner, that allows random access to voice mail.
  • She's on the road so much that she frequently sends a single five-minute-long voice mail to hundreds of people.
  • The remote access feature of voice mail makes it vulnerable to monitoring.
  • The community voice mail service may include toll-free lines at community action agencies.
British Dictionary definitions for voice mail

voice mail

noun
1.
an electronic system for the transfer and storage of telephone messages, which can then be dealt with by the user at his or her convenience
voice mail in Technology

messaging, business
Any system for sending, storing and retrieving audio messages, like a telephone answering machine.
A voice mailbox is typically associated with a telephone number or extension. When the number is called and the line is busy or not answered, the caller hears a message left by the owner and is given instructions for leaving a message or other available options, such as paging the individual or being transferred to an operator. The owner of a mailbox can change the outgoing message or listen to incoming messages after entering a PIN. Members of a voice mail system can generally forward or broadcast messages to other members' boxes.
The experience of two people trying to reach other by telephone but always reaching each other's voice mail is referred to as "(tele)phone tag".
(1996-11-03)