radiotelephone

American  

[rey-dee-oh-tel-uh-fohn] / ˌreɪ di oʊˈtɛl əˌfoʊn /

noun

1. a telephone in which sound or speech is transmitted by means of radio waves instead of through wires or cables. RT

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verb (used with or without object)

radiotelephoned, radiotelephoning

1. to telephone by radiotelephony.

radiotelephone British  

/ ˌreɪdɪəʊˌtɛlɪˈfɒnɪk, ˌreɪdɪəʊtɪˈlɛfənɪ, ˌreɪdɪəʊˈtɛlɪˌfəʊn /

noun

1. Also called: radiophone.   wireless telephone.  a device for communication by means of radio waves rather than by transmitting along wires or cables

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verb

1. to telephone (a person) by radiotelephone

Other Word Forms

• radiotelephony
  noun
• radiotelephonic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of radiotelephone

First recorded in 1905–10; radio- + telephone

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

radiotelephone radiotelephoned

“We can clearly see the name of the ship Hangong Yu 303,” he said into a radiotelephone, reading out its coordinates on the ship’s bridge.

From The Guardian ● Oct. 21, 2020

The ceremonial aspect continued with the raising of the American flag and a radiotelephone conversation with President Richard Nixon.

From The Guardian ● Aug. 26, 2012

We connect him through State Department radiotelephone circuits to his lawyers in Algiers.

From Time Magazine Archive

It was over the C-118 radiotelephone that the word of the fight in Tonkin Gulf was relayed to Sharp.

From Time Magazine Archive

They were preparing to leave when another flash from Washington came over the radiotelephone.

From Tom Swift and The Visitor from Planet X by Appleton, Victor [pseud.]

There was even a report that Secretary of the Interior Wilbur had radiotelephoned.

From Time Magazine Archive

Newsmen on the sturdier, broader-beamed Greenwich Bay, preceding the presidential craft, radiotelephoned the Williamsburg: "Can you give us any local color?"

From Time Magazine Archive

Related Words

• transmission
• wireless