Phone books have white, blue and yellow pages. The white pages list people with phones by last name. The blue pages contain numbers of city services, government services and public services. Businesses and professional services are listed in a special classified directory-the Yellow Pages.
It is generally very easy to find a public telephone in the developed countries. Public phones are located in bus and railroad stations, airports, stores, hotels, restaurants, gasoline stations, on numerous street corners and in most office buildings. From a corner pay-call, you pick up the phone, listen for a dial tone (a buzzing sound), deposits a coin or coins (depending on the cost in the area) and then dial the number.
A person-to-person call can only be accepted by the particular person you are calling. Thus, if that person is not there, you will not be charged. However, person-to-person and collect calls are more expensive than calls dialed directly because they involve the additional labor cost of an operator. The person being called pays for a " collect" call rather than by the person making the call. If you make a long distance call and get a wrong number, call the operator and explain what happened. This means that you can make the call again to the right number without having to pay more money; or you can have the phone company mail you a credit coupon that has the same value as the phone call.

电话簿有白页、蓝页和黄页。白页刊登用户个人的电话号码，是按姓氏排列的。蓝页刊登市政机构、政府机构和公共服务的电话号码。黄页是商业和专业机构的分类电话号码。
想在发达国家找到一部公用电话是非常容易的。公用电话经常安装在以下场所：公共汽车站、火车站、飞机场、商店、旅馆、饭店、加油站、许多街角以及大多数的写字楼。 在街角的付费电话亭，你拿起电话，听到拨号声音（嗡嗡声），投入硬币（数量视地区而定），然后拨号。
叫人电话只能是你叫的那个人接听。所以，如果那个人不在，你就不需付费。叫人电话和对方付费的电话较自拨电话要贵一些，因为接线员得付出额外劳动。在对方付费的电话中，交钱的是接听电话的人而非打电话的人。 如果你打长途时拨错了电话号码，可以给接线员打电话解释一下情况，你就可以再打正确的号码而不用另外付费；你也可以让电话公司寄给你退回电话费用的付款证。

telephone booth ；telephone box；telephone kiosk 电话间
telephone exchange 电话局
telephone, phone 电话,电话机
manual telephone 人工电话
automatic telephone 自动电话
desk phone 台式电话
wall phone 墙上电话
touch phone 按键式电话
dial phone 拨盘式电话
interior phone 内线电话
outside phone 外线电话
special line 专线电话
emergency call 紧急电话
hot line 热线电话
toll-free call; 800 number 免费电话
interphone 内部电话,对讲机
combined set; mobile phone 手机
beeper 寻呼机；BP机
receiver, earpiece 听筒
hook 听筒挂叉
dial 号码盘
hammer 槌
switch 开关,断路器
plug 销
counter, meter 计数器
circuit 电路
frequency 音频
connection, connexion 连接
disconnection, discon-nexion 断开
selector 选择器
switchboard 交换台
telephone network 电话网
extension 分机
line 电话线
cable 电缆
telephone operator, operator 话务员
token 代金牌,代币
telephone subscriber 电话用户
telephone call, ring 打电话
long-distance call, trunk call 长途电话
local call 市内电话
reverse-charge call 受话人付款的电话
telephoned telegram 电话电报
directory inquiries 地址簿
telephone directory, telephone book 电话号簿
to dial a number 拨号
area code, code number 地区代码
ring 电话铃响
dialing tone 拨号音
engaged tone 占线音
to telephone, to call (up), to ring up，to
make a phone call 通话,给......打电话
to lift the telephone, to pick up the telephone 接电话
put me through to... 我想找...
to hold on 别挂上
to hang up 挂上电话
call accounting system 电话自动记费系统
credit card call 信用卡付费电话
magnetic card telephone 磁卡电话