facsimile machine
1
4.9
- noun
- /fækˈsɪmɪli məˈʃin/
- Archaic
:
máquina de fax
- Many businesses rely on a facsimile machine to transmit important papers swiftly.
Examples
-
The original facsimile summary forms were placed in a folder next to the facsimile machine and removed by the consultant at weekly intervals.
Academic text (1998) -
Even though there are significant groups in the Arab world that are horrified by certain aspects of Western cultures (though their leaders are apt to use air transport, facsimile machines, and medical services), cultural parochialism cannot be an option for higher education.
Academic text (1993) -
A facsimile machine was located in the main office of each school and was made available to the teachers.
Academic text (1998) -
The institute has also sent computers, photocopiers, facsimile machines, and other supplies to the FSU journals' editorial offices.
Academic text (1993) -
Facsimile machines tonguing out sheets of paper, and men spreading maps on desks and scribbling onto the elaborate glass-wall diagram.
Fiction book (1995) -
Wires from facsimile machines, computers, and telephones snaked along the lumpy canvas floor, and a generator rumbled somewhere outside, beyond the rear wall they were facing.
Fiction book (1995) -
The service shall accommodate a business entity or employer who wishes to communicate with the Alabama Department of Homeland Security by internet, by electronic mail, by facsimile machine, by telephone, or in person, provided that such communication is consistent with federal statutes and regulations governing E-Verify employer agents.
Blog text (31) -
The teachers used the facsimile machine to send documents to each other quickly.
-
During the meeting, we sent the report through the facsimile machine for immediate review.
Synonyms
123
2.8
A machine that sends and receives printed documents over a phone line
1
7.4
A machine that sends and receives copies of documents over a phone line
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a straightforward noun–noun compound in which 'facsimile' describes the purpose of the 'machine'—a machine that makes or transmits facsimiles (copies). The meaning is compositionally derived from the constituents and follows a common modifier+head pattern found cross-linguistically, so a learner who knows both words would readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The noun facsimile machine comes from the old word facsimile, which itself comes from the phrase 'fac simile' meaning 'make similar', plus machine. It names a machine that makes a very similar copy of a paper and sends it by phone, so the phrase means 'a device that copies and sends documents'.