prank
v.— «Most people born after about 1977 will know that “pranking” is when you call someone up on their mobile phone but hang up immediately afterwards. It’s entered the vernacular as a verb, for example, “I’ll prank you,” or “just prank me.” When you prank someone, your number flashes up on their screen and is registered as a missed call. Your friend (or parents) can then call you back at their own expense and no cost to you.» —“Phone credit low? Just prank me” by Judy Skatssoon Mercury (Hobart, Tasmania, Australia) Sept. 26, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In 1971, when a new public library opened in Troy, Michigan, famous authors and artists were invited to write letters to the city’s youngest readers, extolling the many benefits of libraries. One of the loveliest was from E.B. White, author of...
Judy from Huntsville, Alabama, recalls her stepmother’s words of encouragement: He that hath a horn to toot and tooteth it not, the same shall not be tooted. This faux-formal bit of advice goes back at least to the 1850s. A variation goes:...
Also called “beeping” in Africa, according to this Reuters story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070926/od_nm/africa_beeping1_dc