telegraph
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telegraph
- /ˈtɛl.ɪ.ɡɹɑːf/ UK
- /ˈtɛl.ə.ɡɹɑːf/ UK
- /ˈtɛl.ɪ.ɡɹæf/ Canada, US
- /ˈtɛl.ə.ɡɹæf/ Canada, US
Where it comes from
Borrowed from French télégraphe, equivalent to tele- (“far, distant”) + -graph (“writing”), suggested as a new name for Claude Chappe's overland semaphore network by André François Miot de Mélito in place of Chappe's original tachygraphe (“tachygraph, fast writer”).
noun telegraphs
-
Synonym of telegraphy, any process for transmitting arbitrarily long messages over a long distance using a symbolic code.
This strict sense of telegraph developed from French usage for Napoleon's overland semaphore network but rather arbitrarily excludes similar Chinese and other signalling networks.
Similar: telegraphy, any process for transmitting arbitrarily long messages over a long distance usin
- The electrical device gradually developed in the early 19th century to transmit messages (telegrams) using Morse code; the entire system used to transmit its messages including overhead lines and transoceanic cables. The first message transmitted by telegraph in the United States was WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT.
- A visible or audible cue that indicates to an opponent the action that a character is about to take.
verb telegraphs · telegraphing · telegraphed
- To use a telegraph; to send a message by telegraph. Whenever this portent occurs, my steward telegraphs to me, that I, as head of the family, be not unsteeled against the shock of a bereavement […]
- To clearly communicate to another nonverbally (whether by gesture, a change in attitude, or any other sign), and especially unintentionally. Her frown telegraphed her displeasure.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: telegraphy, cable, wire, telegraphic, telegram, telex, telecommunication, telecommunications, semaphoric, telecom, lightning, gang, steel, radiotelegram, cablegram, radiogram
Translations
Every language
noun chiefly historical: electrical device
| Español | telégrafo |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 전보 jeonbo, 전신 jeonsin |
| 日本語 | 電報 denpō, 電信 denshin |
| 中文 | 電報 /电报 diànbào, 電報機 /电报机 diànbàojī, 電信 /电信 diànxìn |
| हिन्दी | टेलीग्राफ़ ṭelīgrāf, दूरलेख dūrlekh, टेलिग्राफ़ ṭeligrāf |
| Português | telégrafo |
| Français | télégraphe |
| Deutsch | Telegraph, Telegraf |
| Italiano | telegrafo |
| Ελληνικά | τηλέγραφος tilégrafos |
| Română | telegraf |
| Русский | телегра́ф telegráf |
| Tiếng Việt | máy điện báo, điện báo |
| العربية | تِلِغْرَاف tiliḡrāf, بَرْقِيَّة barqiyya, بَرْق barq |
| עברית | טֶלֶגְרַפְיָה telegrafya |
verb to use a telegraph
| Español | telegrafiar |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 진보(電報)를 보내다 jinbo-reul bonaeda, 타전(打電)하다 tajeonhada |
| 日本語 | 電報を送る denpō o okuru |
| Português | telegrafar |
| Français | télégraphier, dépêcher |
| Deutsch | telegraphieren, depeschieren |
| Italiano | telegrafare |
| Ελληνικά | τηλεγραφώ tilegrafó |
| Română | telegrafia |
| Русский | телеграфировать telegrafirovatʹ |
Talk about this word "telegraph." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/telegraph. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. telegraph. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/telegraph "telegraph." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/telegraph.Cite this
@misc{telegraph_2026,
title = {telegraph},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/telegraph},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
