tele

1 of 2

noun

less common spelling of telly

British, informal
: television
… I asked parents what they thought of children's telly.Vanessa Feltz
While you were doing your couch potato number in front of the telly last Sun., 67-yr-old Zadu Taft was swimming across the Golden Gate …Berb Caen
Is there any truth to the hundreds of pieces of advice we hear from aunt Jane, who 'saw it on the tele'?Patrick Holler

tele-

2 of 2

combining form

variants or tel-
1
: distant : at a distance : over a distance
telegram
2
a
: telegraph
teletypewriter
b
: television
telecast
c
: telecommunication
telemarketing

Word History

Etymology

Combining form

New Latin, from Greek tēle-, tēl-, from tēle far off

Dictionary Entries Near tele

Cite this Entry

“Tele.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tele. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

tele-

combining form
1
: at or over a distance
telegram
2
: television
telecast
Etymology

Combining form

derived from Greek tēle "far off"

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