[dahy-uh
l, dahyl] 
noun, verb, di⋅aled, di⋅al⋅ing or (especially British) di⋅alled, di⋅al⋅ling, adjective | 1. | a plate, disk, face, or other surface containing markings or figures upon which the time of day is indicated by hands, pointers, or shadows, as of a clock or sundial. |
| 2. | a plate or disk with markings or figures for indicating or registering some measurement or number, as of pressure, number of revolutions, the frequency to which a radio is tuned, etc., usually by means of a pointer. |
| 3. | a rotatable plate, disk, or knob used for regulating a mechanism, making and breaking electrical connections, etc., as in tuning a radio or television station in or out. |
| 4. | Also called rotary dial. a rotatable plate or disk on a telephone, fitted with finger holes that are marked with letters or numbers, used in making calls through an automatic switchboard. |
| 5. | any mechanism on the face of a telephone by which the caller places a call, as push buttons. |
| 6. | Also called miner's dial. Mining. a compass used for underground surveying. |
| 7. | to indicate or register on or as if on a dial. |
| 8. | to measure with or as if with a dial. |
| 9. | to regulate, select, or tune in by means of a dial, as on a radio: to dial my favorite program. |
| 10. | to make a telephone call to: Dial me at home. |
| 11. | to use a telephone dial; to dial a telephone: I keep dialing, but the line seems dead. |
| 12. | to tune in or regulate by means of a dial: to dial into the opera broadcast. |
| 13. | (of a telephone) having a rotary dial mechanism. |
| 14. | dial up, to obtain, reach, or contact by telephone: to dial up stock-market information; to dial up Chicago and do some business. |