1. They looked around when he called.
2. He was not at home when he called.
3. They looked around when he called me.
4. He was not at home when he called me.
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In #1, does 'called' means 'made a phone call' or 'sounded loudly'?
What about in Sentence 2?
What about in #3 and #4?
Either meaning could be true for all four sentences. Everything depends on context. Single sentences can't always tell you all you need to know about a word and its meaning.
To determine the meaning of the word "called" in each sentence, we can analyze the context:
1. "They looked around when he called."
In this sentence, "called" most likely means "made a phone call." The phrase "They looked around" suggests that someone made a phone call, causing people to react by searching their surroundings.
2. "He was not at home when he called."
In this sentence, "called" can also be understood as "made a phone call." The phrase "He was not at home" indicates that someone made a phone call from a location other than their home.
3. "They looked around when he called me."
Similar to sentence #1, the word "called" here refers to "made a phone call." The phrase "They looked around" indicates that upon receiving the phone call, the person or people searched the area.
4. "He was not at home when he called me."
As with sentence #2, the word "called" in this context means "made a phone call." The phrase "He was not at home" states that the person made a phone call while being away from their residence.