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Glite Dictionary
wireless telegraph

wireless telegraph

7.1
Sending messages by radio using dots and dashes called Morse code
  • noun
  • /ˈwaɪərləs ˈtɛlɪɡræf/
  • Archaic
translation icon : telégrafo inalámbrico
  • The wireless telegraph revolutionized long-distance communication.

Examples

  • The development of the wireless telegraph revolutionized maritime communication.

  • Did the wireless telegraph help during the war?

  • Before telephones, news was sometimes transmitted via wireless telegraph across long distances.

  • The ship sent out an SOS message using its wireless telegraph.

  • In 1901, Guglielmo Marconi successfully used his wireless telegraph to send the first transatlantic message.

  • During the war, soldiers relied on the wireless telegraph to communicate critical information from the front lines.

  • The invention of the wireless telegraph allowed ships at sea to receive important weather updates without relying on physical cables.

Synonyms

telecommunication
vswireless telegraph
  • Specialized
8 3.6

The sending of information over long distances by phone, radio or internet

is specifically about coded radio message transmission, usually using Morse code
telegraphy
vswireless telegraph
  • Archaic
1 8.6

Sending messages over long distances using electric signals, often before telephones existed

uses radio signals and coded methods instead of cable-based electric sending
wireless telegraphy
vswireless telegraph
  • Archaic
1 7.4

Sending messages by radio without using wires

stresses using Morse code over radio rather than general radio use
radiotelegraph
vswireless telegraph
  • Archaic
1 9.5

A system for sending messages by radio instead of using wires

refers to the transmission action rather than the system
radiotelegraphy
vswireless telegraph
  • Archaic
8.9

Sending messages by radio often using Morse code

focuses on sending coded messages by radio rather than other uses
radiocommunication
vswireless telegraph
  • Specialized
4.4

Sending and receiving messages by radio waves

limits meaning to coded radio signaling rather than all radio communication

Surface Forms

wireless telegraph singular
wireless telegraphs plural

Morphology

wireless + telegraph

The meaning 'transmission of telegraphic messages by radio' is directly and predictably derived from combining 'telegraph' (sending coded messages) with 'wireless' (without wires, using radio waves). This compositional pattern — a known communication method qualified as 'without wires' — is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The noun wireless telegraph comes from the idea of a telegraph that is wireless, sending messages through the air instead of along wires. In the early days people sent Morse code by radio so ships and stations could 'talk' over long distances, so today the phrase means 'sending telegraph messages by radio'.