Facetimed

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Made a video call to another person through the FaceTime application on an Apple device
2. Connected with someone face to face over a video link using the FaceTime app
3. Placed a live video chat to a friend or relative using Apple's FaceTime service

Etymology: FaceTime was a brand name first, and its verb form followed the product. Apple launched FaceTime as a video calling feature for its devices, and people quickly began using the name as a verb for the act of making such a call. Because it is a verb built on a trademarked noun, "facetimed" is simply the past tense of that verb, formed the regular English way by adding "-ed" to the base form. The name itself is a compound of "face" and "time," joined to suggest seeing someone's face in real time during a conversation. The pairing reflects the feature's purpose: a call in which the other person's face is visible while you talk, rather than a voice-only exchange. What makes the word unusual is how quickly a company's product name turned into an everyday action. Speakers did not need a generic term for video calling, so they borrowed the brand and bent it to ordinary grammar, saying they had "facetimed" a friend just as earlier generations said they had "phoned" or "telephoned" someone.

Synonyms: video call, video chat