telegraph

tele·graph | \ ˈte-lə-ˌgraf

Definition of telegraph

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : an apparatus for communication at a distance by coded signals especially : an apparatus, system, or process for communication at a distance by electric transmission over wire

2 : telegram

telegraph

verb

telegraphed; telegraphing; telegraphs

Definition of telegraph (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1a : to send or communicate by or as if by telegraph

b : to send a telegram to

c : to send by means of a telegraphic order

2 : to make known by signs especially unknowingly and in advance

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Examples of telegraph in a Sentence

Noun I sent the message by telegraph. Verb He telegraphed a message to her. Please telegraph when you get there. Please telegraph me when you get there. The look on her face telegraphed bad news. He lost the boxing match because he was telegraphing his punches.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Wire services such as the Associated Press offered breaking news by telegraph, with the understanding that editors would cut, embellish, or otherwise alter the text for their own pages. — Julia Guarneri, Smithsonian, "How Syndicated Columns, Comics and Stories Forever Changed the News Media," 31 Oct. 2019 On November 3, 1906, an international conference approved the three-letter message as the radio telegraph distress call for ships at sea. — CBS News, "This week on "Sunday Morning" (November 3)," 31 Oct. 2019 The telegraph, 19th-century social media, revealed their colonies’ real-time locations to industrious hunters who felled their oak and beech homes and stole or crushed their nests. — Ashley Braun, Longreads, "Research and Rescue: Saving Species from Ourselves," 24 Oct. 2019 These wordless glimpses telegraph too little about her life. — Shirley Li, The Atlantic, "Modern Love Has Nothing New to Say About Modern Love," 23 Oct. 2019 Let’s consider the electric telegraph, the original digital communication network. — Wired, "Opinion: From the telegraph to cars, we've never feared tech as much as we think we have.," 18 Sep. 2019 The movie doesn’t telegraph or slow down for these moments so much as stumble upon them with an artlessness that is, paradoxically, the surest sign of its art. — Justin Chang, chicagotribune.com, "‘Give Me Liberty’ review: A medical transport van welcomes all," 12 Sep. 2019 A century later, large areas were cleared for roads and telegraph lines. — Adrian Higgins, Washington Post, "Amid the smoke of a burning Amazon rises the specter of the artist Roberto Burle Marx," 3 Oct. 2019 As reporter Lew Irwin wrote in 2010: The explosion destroyed the Times building, taking the lives of 20 employees, including the night city editor and the principal telegraph operator, and maiming dozens of others. — Los Angeles Times, "Newsletter: In the front row of the Ukraine drama," 1 Oct. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb The blue backdrop of Lake Huron’s Georgian Bay is gorgeous, and the photos telegraph the value of family adventures. — Laura Johnston, cleveland, "Why we send holiday cards -- and what are the trends in 2019," 2 Dec. 2019 The shutdown, dubbed The End, was telegraphed (somewhat) ahead of time by Fortnite's social channels, though the actual happening came as quite a surprise to both players and the gaming world at large. — Patrick Shanley, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Fortnite' Returns After 36-Hour Blackout Publicity Stunt," 15 Oct. 2019 As telegraphed by the title, Lane plays a seemingly happy suburban wife who meets a young Frenchman in SoHo and launches into a passionate affair. — Washington Post, "The missing Oscars," 25 Sep. 2019 Keeping both options alive and telegraphed to the audience with a minimum of language is a hell of a juggling act. — Jason Zinoman, New York Times, "Make Way for the Carnal Clowns of Stand-Up," 15 Nov. 2019 The Tigers telegraphed their urgency with a trick play on their opening drive. — Jason Mcdaniel, Houston Chronicle, "Katy gets past Tompkins to remain undefeated," 3 Oct. 2019 The game was also broadcast live on the radio and telegraphed updates were instantly available to newspapers through wire services, courtesy of the fellows in the front row. — Bulletin Board, Twin Cities, "Sunday Bulletin Board: When her dad and her brother went out to hunt pheasants, what was her job?," 27 Oct. 2019 Throwing the Kurds under the bus telegraphed to the region that being friends with the Americans is a bad bet. — Jonathan S. Tobin, National Review, "The Problem with Trump’s ‘Normandy Doctrine’," 11 Oct. 2019 Walsh, who publicly supported Trump in 2016, has been telegraphing the longshot bid against Trump for weeks. — Chicago Tribune Staff, chicagotribune.com, "Former Illinois Congressman Joe Walsh announces challenge against President Donald Trump for 2020 Republican nomination," 25 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'telegraph.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

9 Dec 2019

Cite this Entry

“Telegraph.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/telegraph. Accessed 13 December 2019.

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More Definitions for telegraph

telegraph

noun