Telegraph

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈtɛl.ə.ɡɹæf/

Definitions

1. A method of conveying information over long distances through coded signals sent via electrical currents
2. A system used for transmitting messages across distances via signals, typically utilizing electrical impulses to encode information
3. An apparatus designed for sending and receiving messages over vast distances through coded electrical signals

Etymology: The telegraph was born as a name for a semaphore network, not an electrical device. Claude Chappe's overland system of signal towers, which relayed messages across France using mechanical arms, was originally called the "tachygraphe" ("fast writer"). André François Miot de Mélito suggested a new name, "télégraphe," built from the Greek "tele-" ("far, distant") and "-graph" ("writing"). The word then passed from French into English, where it was applied to the electrical systems that later replaced towers and arms. So the original sense was simply "writing at a distance," a description of the way a message travelled from one station to the next. The electrical version that gave the word its modern meaning came later, and the old semaphore sense had been the first thing the name ever described.

Synonyms: cable, wire, message, signal, communication

Antonyms: silence, quiet, concealment, hiding, secrecy