off the hook

[ostap77]

Can I say that my cell has been ringing off the hook? Is there any expression for the cell phone?

[sunsunmoon]

Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary
off the hook
with the receiver not resting in its usual position
▪ They took the phone off the hook so that it wouldn't ring.

[ostap77]

Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary
off the hook
with the receiver not resting in its usual position
▪ They took the phone off the hook so that it wouldn't ring.

But you might be well aware of the fact that there is the expression "Your phone has been ringing off the hook" meaning your phone has been ringing a lot. So my question would be be if I can use it for my cell?

[sunsunmoon]

You can leave this phone "off the hook," but...


you can't leave this phone "off the hook."

[ostap77]

You can leave this phone "off the hook," but...


you can't leave this phone "off the hook."

Would you be getting the meaning of my question? It's got nothing to do with "leaving off the hook". It's about "reaning off the hook" as if I'm refering to old phones that had the hook. It's used figuratively.

[ostap77]

You can leave this phone "off the hook," but...


you can't leave this phone "off the hook."

I would be appreciative if you give it your full consideration before giving an answer to the question, especially if you are not sure about it.

"“My cell phone was ringing off the hook,” said McCallen, the president of the MSU Alumni Club of Tampa Bay, Fla., and an MSU alumna. “I got a lot of text messages, and I had a lot of e-mails asking about tickets. … Everyone’s really excited to have the team down here.”

Given above is the context where it's used figuratively. Once again it's got nothing to do with "leaving off the hook."

[sunsunmoon]

The Amboy Times: Obsession Movie Offends Muslims
''My cellphone has been ringing off the hook . . . We feel that it's going to incite more hate and bigotry against our community,'' said Altaf Ali, Florida chapter director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

[ostap77]

The Amboy Times: Obsession Movie Offends Muslims
''My cellphone has been ringing off the hook . . . We feel that it's going to incite more hate and bigotry against our community,'' said Altaf Ali, Florida chapter director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Now you seem to have understood what my question was about! Way to go!

[SoothingDave]

Can I say that my cell has been ringing off the hook? Is there any expression for the cell phone?

The same expression is used. We still "dial" numbers, but phones do not have dials anymore.

[Rover_KE]

I agree with Dave.

This phrase always was used figuratively. Even in the old days a phone never rang violently enough to make the receiver jump off its hook.

Rover