calling

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkɔːlɪŋ/, [kʰolɪŋ]
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈkɔlɪŋ/, [kʰɔlɪŋ]
• (US, cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /ˈkɑlɪŋ/, [kʰɑlɪŋ]

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔːlɪŋ

Etymology 1

From Middle English callyng, kallyng, kalland, from Old English *cealliende and Old Norse kallandi, equivalent to call +‎ -ing.

Verb

calling

1. present participle and gerund of call

Etymology 2

From Middle English calling, callynge, equivalent to call +‎ -ing.

Noun

calling (plural callings)

1. A strong urge to become religious.
2. A job or occupation.
   • 2013 June 22, “Engineers of a different kind”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 70:

     Private-equity nabobs bristle at being dubbed mere financiers. Piling debt onto companies’ balance-sheets is only a small part of what leveraged buy-outs are about, they insist. Improving the workings of the businesses they take over is just as core to their calling, if not more so. Much of their pleading is public-relations bluster.

Synonyms

• vocation

Translations

strong urge to become religious

• Bulgarian: влече́ние (bg) n (vlečénie)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 呼召 (fu¹ ziu⁶)

  Mandarin: 呼召 (zh) (hūzhào)

• Esperanto: alvokiĝo
• Finnish: kutsumus
• Greek:

  Ancient: κλῆσις f (klêsis)

• Italian: vocazione (it) f, chiamata (it) f
• Japanese: 天命 (ja) (tenmē)
• Scottish Gaelic: gairmeach m
• Swahili: wito (sw)
• Swedish: kall (sv) n

occupation

• Bulgarian: професия (bg) f (profesija), призва́ние (bg) n (prizvánie)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 職業／职业 (zh) (zhíyè)

• Czech: povolání (cs) n
• Finnish: ammatti (fi)
• Greek:

  Ancient: ἐπιτήδευμα n (epitḗdeuma)

• Hungarian: hivatás (hu)
• Japanese: 天命 (ja) (tenmē)
• Scottish Gaelic: gairm m
• Swedish: kall (sv) n