WATS line

1 8.4

A telephone line for long-distance calls that charges fixed rates for certain areas, often used by businesses

noun

Archaic

: línea WATS

The company installed a WATS line to handle its growing volume of customer service calls.

Examples

Before the advent of the internet, businesses relied heavily on the WATS line for long-distance communication.
Our office cut costs by switching from multiple phone lines to a single WATS line.
Our company uses a WATS line for all long-distance calls.
Do you know how much a WATS line costs?
The company installed a WATS line to reduce their long-distance phone costs.
Businesses often rely on a WATS line for affordable communication between different offices.
To enhance connectivity, they decided to set up a WATS line for their remote employees.

Synonyms

WATS

vsWATS line

Archaic

1 8.1

A telephone service businesses use for long-distance calls at fixed rates to certain areas

is the full phrase form rather than a shortened acronym

Surface Forms

WATS line singular

WATS lines plural

Morphology

WATS + line

The phrase is directly compositional: 'WATS' denotes a specific long‑distance telephone service and 'line' denotes a communication channel, so 'WATS line' straightforwardly means a telephone line providing that service. Although 'WATS' is specialized jargon/an acronym, the overall meaning is predictable from the constituents for a learner who knows both parts.

Etymology

WATS line comes from the name Wide Area Telephone Service, a special phone line that covered a large area and let businesses make many long-distance calls for a fixed price. That's why a WATS line means 'a telephone line providing long-distance service at fixed rates'.