wake-up call

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"It's a wake-up call for the whole of civilisation", to "be rational when we use these tools".

From Barron's • May 25, 2026

"That feeling of being last is horrible, and I think it was like a wake-up call."

From BBC • May 21, 2026

But I’d encourage you to use this discovery as motivation — a wake-up call that jolts you into action.

From MarketWatch • May 20, 2026

For private-equity investors, however, the actions in Oregon and California are a wake-up call, showing that the new laws can’t be ignored, said John Saran, a partner at law firm Holland & Knight.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026

The more I thought about it, the more I was sure that Fig had slept all day, except for the 5:42 a.m. wake-up call.

From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas