Is it considered polite if a person answered an incoming call whilst you were on the phone with them already?

Question

any thoughts?

Answer 1

Is it ever "proper" to interrupt someone while in conversation with them? One can answer this question by considering how one feels when it happens to them.

The highest compliment we can give to the party we are conversing with is to ignore the incoming call.

Answer 2

I think call waiting is generally rude. The technology is available and widely used, so it will not be considered rude much longer.

I consider it quite rude when someone calls me and one of their first two sentences is interrupted by another call to them. There are times when it would seem most polite to ignore the second incoming call. Young people are the worst offenders in this way, but that is probably because of the technology they grew up with. It's available to they are supposed to use it. I think this post-modern generation would generally rather talk on the cell-phone than face to face, and most of their phone calls and text messages are pointless. Strange what people find to be fun.

Anyway, etiquette will change because of call-waiting, cell phones, text messaging, etc. We will continue our cocooning and prefer relating to electrons and photons instead of live people. Strange isn't it? How about a home full of youth each listening to their own iPod or playing their own PSP using headphones, some of them playing with other kids thousands of miles away on the internet. Scary!

Answer 3

No, it is not polite especially if they initiated the call. If the person is expecting another call, they have to tell you in the beginning or they should have the courtesy to excuse themselves or by asking if it okay to call you back. With the invention of technology and the instant ways to communicate, society has become much more rude than before. People think nothing of using cell phones in the most inappropriate places.

Answer 4

I'm not offended if someone answers a call waiting while I'm talking with them, only if they take more than a minute to say "hey, can I call you back?" If they're on there chatting with them and it takes more than about a minute or 2, hang up.

My phone is hard to ignore a call waiting because it's beeping in my ear, and I can't hear the person I'm talking to. So I just tell whoever's interrupting my call that I'll call them back, or to make it quick because I'm on another line.

Answer 5

No, I personally don't like call-waiting, unless it's an emergency, or you have to be on-call for your job. For many years I was "on-call," so my friends and family knew that if work called while we were talking, I'd have to take the call. I'd always let them know first, though.

In general, if it's putting one friend on hold to chat with another, I think that's rude. Exceptions are when you're trying to hook up all the friends together to go out, or if there's a dire emergency.

Answer 6

Etiquette ranks only second to the basic urgent needs. So except in such situations of urgency, it is quite reasonable to answer an incoming call , at least to know if THAT call is more urgent !

Answer 7

A telephone won't wake me at 4.00am neither might a nuk-cle-ear gadget. and maximum anybody is at their least responsive right now, the milkman might even believe me, he lacks the flexibility with basically an electric powered milk glide. ok! i think of possibly some milkman can furnish a woman a poke at that factor.

Answer 8

No it would not be polite to do so without apologising. The person should apologise and say why it's important to them to put you on hold. You would have to accept their apology (whether or not you agreed with them would be up to you, of course). At least then they would have gone through the motions of etiquette.

Answer 9

I have a friend who is incessantly called on the cell phone by another friend.Ispeak to my friend once a day for a short time.While I am speaking to my friend,the incessant caller is calling in and my friend tells me he has to go to answer the incessant caller who never,ever has anything to say!I am insulted!iT IS ESPECIALLY RUDE TO BE TOLD THAT THE ANNOYING CALLER IS CALLING,TALK TO YOU LATER!When i do talk to my friend the next day or later?All he does is complain to me how much it bothers him when he receives up to twenty calls a day from the rude,incessant caller?!

Answer 10

If they excuse themselves and explain why they feel the other call is important.

My sister says "wait!" then she's gone. I think that's rude.
My friend says "Excuse me but I have to check who's calling because I'm waiting for a call from ... ". That's polite.