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Glite Dictionary
teletype machine

teletype machine

1 8.8
A machine that types and prints messages sent over telegraph lines
  • noun
  • /ˈtɛləˌtaɪp məˈʃin/
  • Archaic
translation icon : máquina de teletipo
  • During the 1960s, many newspaper offices used a teletype machine to transmit and print stories rapidly.

Examples

  • CITRINE stares at a teletype machine waiting for transmission on Jennifer to complete.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • I'm now visualizing the vast banks of electromechanical relays and teletype machines allowing worldwide IRC chatrooms and MMPGs in a steampunk world.

    Blog text (28)

  • In the past, journalists relied on a teletype machine to receive news updates from the wire service.

  • The teletype machine produced printed news bulletins that informed the public of important events.

Synonyms

telex
vsteletype machine
  • Archaic
4 9.3

A machine that types and sends written messages to distant places

is the broader device term that does not stress network affiliation
teleprinter
vsteletype machine
  • Archaic
1 8.8

A machine like a typewriter that sends and prints messages over wires

emphasizes printing messages over a telegraph network rather than the device mechanics
TTY
vsteletype machine
  • Archaic
1 9.8

An old machine that types and sends messages over wires

is the general device name without the historical or abbreviated note
telex machine
vsteletype machine
  • Archaic
1 9.6

A machine like a typewriter that sends typed messages over wires

is the general telegraph printing device not tied to a specific network
teletypewriter
vsteletype machine
  • Archaic
8.8

A machine like a typewriter that prints messages sent over wires

is the alternative compound form often used in technical texts

Surface Forms

teletype machine singular
teletype machines plural

Morphology

teletype + machine

The meaning is directly compositional: 'teletype' denotes a system for printing long‑distance typed messages and 'machine' denotes a device, so 'teletype machine' straightforwardly refers to a device that performs teletype functions. This noun+noun compound follows common English compounding patterns and would be predictable to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.

Etymology

Teletype machine is named for how it worked: the part tele means 'far' and type is like typing on a typewriter, so the image is a machine that printed letters sent from far away. So the name came to mean 'a device that prints text messages sent and received over long distances'.