Facetime

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. A method of engaging in live visual dialogue through digital platforms that connects users regardless of geographical distance
2. A system allowing individuals to communicate by seeing and hearing one another in real-time via internet technology
3. A contemporary digital communication technique enabling users to interact visually and audibly with one another while being physically apart

Etymology: Apple's video calling app is named FaceTime, and its name began as a plain phrase: "face time" already meant the amount of time spent in visual communication with another party. The trademark took that ordinary compound and capitalized it into a brand, so the lowercase "facetime" you see today is a case variant of the product name rather than a separate coinage. The shift from phrase to verb is the interesting part. Once the brand became familiar, people began using it as a word for the act itself, so that calling someone on the app and talking face to face became something you could simply do. Both the noun and the verb now carry that meaning, with the verb inflecting like any other: you facetime a relative, facetimed them last night, are facetiming now.