Meanings
proper noun
- The telephone number for law enforcement in Jamaica, Mozambique, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka.
- The telephone number for ambulance services in Cambodia, Cameroon, Colombia, Guinea-Bissau, Indonesia, Japan, and South Korea and on Taiwan.
119 handles fires and medical emergencies in Japan, Taiwan, and Korea but the police have a separate number, 110.
- The telephone number for firefighting assistance in China, Bolivia, Japan, and South Korea.
- The telephone number for antiterrorist services in Afghanistan.
Origin
Variant of 911, which see.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
119. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/119
MLA
“119.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/119. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “119,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/119.
Source: 119 on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.