telephone unit

4.9

A measure of phone time used to charge you, usually one minute

noun

Specialized

: unidad telefónica

Each telephone unit is equivalent to one minute of talk time.

Examples

The cost of international calls is calculated based on the number of telephone units used.
I received my bill, and it showed five telephone units used.
The phone company charges you a fixed rate per telephone unit.
The telephone unit is essential for tracking usage.
The cost of international calls is calculated based on the number of telephone units used.
Each telephone unit is equivalent to one minute of talk time.
I received my bill, and it showed five telephone units used.

Surface Forms

telephone unit singular

telephone units plural

Morphology

telephone + unit

The meaning 'a unit used to measure telephone service' is directly derivable from combining 'telephone' (device/service) and 'unit' (a defined measurement quantity); the compound simply denotes a measurement unit associated with telephone usage. This noun–noun compounding is a common, compositional pattern in English and other languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

Telephone unit comes from old phone billing, when companies counted talk time in small units. One unit was often one minute or one 'tick' on the meter, so the phrase means the small piece of phone service used for charging.