ansible

American  

[an-suh-buhl] / ˈæn sə bəl /

noun

1. (in science fiction) a device for instantaneous communication, or other purposes, across cosmic distances.

   With the ansible on the fritz, it would take eleven years for their message to reach the admiral, who was waging war in another galaxy.

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Etymology

Origin of ansible

Shortening of answerable; coined by Ursula K. Le Guin in her novel Rocannon's World (1966)

Example Sentences

He fires up the ansible, too, checking it again.

From Nature • May 30, 2017

He goes to a corner of their habitat and turns on the ansible.

From Nature • May 30, 2017

I could show them the ansible, but it didn’t make a very convincing Alien Artifact, being so incomprehensible to fit in with hoax as well as with reality.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin

It held not only spare clothes but also my rubies, cash, documents, papers, and ansible, and I slept with it as a pillow when I traveled.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin

He said in his shrill harsh voice, “What’s that?”—pointing to the ansible.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin