demon dialing

noun

The use of a computer to dial a number repeatedly (usually to a crowded modem pool) in an attempt to gain access immediately after another user has hung up.

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Meanings

noundemon dialing (uncountable)
  1. uncountablecommunicationsThe use of a computer to dial a number repeatedly (usually to a crowded modem pool) in an attempt to gain access immediately after another user has hung up.

Origin

From the Demon Dialer product from Zoom Telephonics, Inc., a telephone device produced in the 1980s which repeatedly dialed busy telephone numbers under control of an extension phone.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

demon dialing. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/demon%20dialing

MLA

“demon dialing.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/demon%20dialing. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “demon dialing,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/demon%20dialing.

Source: demon dialing on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.