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telegram

American  
[tel-i-gram] / ˈtɛl ɪˌgræm /

noun

  1. a message or communication sent by telegraph; a telegraphic dispatch.

verb (used with or without object)

telegrammed, telegramming

  1. to telegraph.

telegram British  
/ ˈtɛlɪˌɡræm, ˌtɛlɪɡrəˈmætɪk /

noun

  1. a communication transmitted by telegraph See also cable Telemessage

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • telegrammatic adjective
  • telegrammic adjective

Etymology

Origin of telegram

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55; tele- 1 + -gram 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

A British businessman fast running out of cash, William Knox D'Arcy, is said to have uttered those words when he received a telegram from Persia, 113 years ago.

From BBC • Jun. 21, 2025

The band received a telegram in reply providing the phone number for Leslie Conn, who became their manager.

From BBC • Sep. 21, 2024

Posters in Detroit depicting a military man resembling Hitler were ordered, by telegram, to be destroyed.

From New York Times • May 30, 2024

After Finnegan’s death, a local newspaper published a telegram from Gen. Douglas MacArthur expressing condolences to Finnegan’s family:

From Seattle Times • Apr. 17, 2024

She stopped in front of us and took a telegram out of the leather wallet that hung against her skirt.

From "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.