The Mandarin Chinese phrase '打电话 (dǎ diànhuà)' is referred to the action of making a phone call. It is used when someone is initiating a telephone conversation to another party. The verb '打 (dǎ)' is used because it commonly translates to 'to hit' or 'to make', giving the idea of initiating an action, in this case, the action is making a telephone call.