call of nature
2
5.8
- noun
- NSFW
:
llamada de la naturaleza
- The two boys twist like eels upon their chairs, and Lucius pretends he is suffering a call of nature, but Mama doesn't let them off so easily.
- answer the call of nature
Examples
-
They let him eat when he got hungry, rest when he got tired, and answer any other calls of nature when he was so moved.
Fiction book (1993) -
I simply answer the call of nature.
-
Maybe just after answering a call of nature.
Blog text (26) -
On the assumption, evidently, that a man of my age would have to answer the call of nature after a three-hour drive.
Fiction book (1993) -
Apart from letting the dog out and responding to what my grandmother referred to as the call of nature, his morning routine consists of reading the Times-Picayune.
Fiction book (1991) -
Ben, who had just stepped outside to answer the call of nature, quietly returned with a pair of damp overalls and lost his head in the big trunk.
Fiction book (1996) -
Time after time, anglers recalled getting the bite that led to a great fish at the very moment when they were brewing tea, answering the call of nature, falling asleep, anything but concentrating on fishing—far too many times to be put down to coincidence.
Fiction book (2002) -
I need to step outside for a minute; it's the call of nature.
-
During the hike, I had to find a private spot to answer the call of nature.
-
Excuse me, I must attend to the call of nature before we continue.
Synonyms
1
8.5
To pee or poop
To go to the toilet to pee or poo
A polite, funny way to say you need to go to the toilet
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun 'call' can be understood as an urge and 'nature' as natural bodily functions, so a learner who knows both words can plausibly infer this is a polite/euphemistic reference to a bodily need. However, the exact toilet-specific meaning (urinate/defecate) is metaphorical and euphemistic rather than strictly compositional, so the sense is not fully predictable without prior exposure.
Etymology
Call of nature may come from the simple image of your body giving a call when it needs help, like a quiet voice from nature telling you to step away. That polite picture turned the phrase into a way to say 'to go to the toilet'.