Do watch phones actually work as stand alone phones or do you need a cell phone with them?

What you called "watch phones" are actually called smartwatches. For the most part they require a specific smartphone with them.

Which "watch phone"? There are "smart watches"... generally, if they have some sort of calling capability, they need to be paired with a phone in order to make/take calls.

the apple ones work as fully functoining iphones with more