telegraph

telegraph — noun

1. A system, mainly used from the mid-1800s to the mid-1900s, that sends written me

1.nounB2
Definition

A system, mainly used from the mid-1800s to the mid-1900s, that sends written messages as electrical pulses travelling along wires, together with the machines that transmit and receive them.

Example

Bilal sent a telegraph to warn the mine manager about the flood before the storm.

Darius learned to use a telegraph at the railway station where he worked.

collocation: use / operate a telegraph

Common collocations
  • send by telegraph
  • use a telegraph
  • operate a telegraph
  • the invention of the telegraph
  • telegraph wire
  • telegraph operator
  • telegraph key
Synonyms
  • telegram

    refers to the message itself, not the system or device

Usage Note

When talking about the communication system as a historical technology, the phrase 'the telegraph' (uncountable) is most common. The countable form 'a telegraph' refers to the physical machine.

Common Mistakes

I sent her a telegraph yesterday' (when the message is meant).
I sent her a telegram yesterday.
The machine is a telegraph; the message sent through it is a telegram.

telegraph — verb

Word family

  • telegraphic
    adjectiveC1
  • telegraphy
    nounC1
  • telegrapher
    nounC1
  • telegram
    nounB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All four expressions describe transmitting a message over distance before the age of email, but they differ in nuance. 'Telegraph' as a verb is the most formal and historically precise — it refers specifically to sending messages using telegraph equipment and Morse code, as in 'The office telegraphed the news to London.' 'Cable' usually implies sending a message via an undersea telegraph cable, especially between continents: 'The ambassador cabled the foreign ministry from Tokyo.' 'Wire' is the most informal of the three verbs, common in American English: 'Wire me when you arrive.' 'Send a telegram' is the everyday phrasal alternative that remains natural even in modern speech when talking about the past. In modern use, all three verbs sound historical, but 'cable' is the most durable because undersea cables are still in use for internet communications.

telegraph ↗cable ↗wire ↗send a telegram

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • Morse code
  • long-distance communication
  • before the telephone

Prepositions

  • by telegraph
  • telegraph to
  • telegraph from

Etymology

GreekFrenchEnglish

The word comes from French 'télégraphe', which was formed from Ancient Greek 'tēle-' (meaning 'far off') and 'graphein' (meaning 'to write'). The first practical telegraph system was developed in the 1830s by Samuel Morse and others, and the word spread quickly alongside the technology.