Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

telescopes

  • plural
    of telescope.
    telescope
    noun
    an optical instrument for making distant objects appear larger and therefore nearer. One of the two principal forms refracting telescope, or refractor consists essentially of an objective lens set into one end of a tube and an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses set into the other end of a tube that slides into the first and through which the enlarged object is viewed directly; the other form reflecting telescope, or reflector has a concave mirror that gathers light from the object and focuses it into an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses through which the reflection of the object is enlarged and viewed.
  • present tense form
    of telescope (3rd person singular).
    telescope
    noun
    an optical instrument for making distant objects appear larger and therefore nearer. One of the two principal forms refracting telescope, or refractor consists essentially of an objective lens set into one end of a tube and an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses set into the other end of a tube that slides into the first and through which the enlarged object is viewed directly; the other form reflecting telescope, or reflector has a concave mirror that gathers light from the object and focuses it into an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses through which the reflection of the object is enlarged and viewed.

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.

See Examples For:

Their earliest soft X-ray emission has been far more difficult to observe because most narrow-field X-ray telescopes depend on gamma-ray alerts to locate a burst before turning toward it.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026

These rare signals carry clues to where the neutrinos came from and the extreme conditions that produced them — allowing scientists to investigate places that ordinary telescopes cannot easily see.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

"Roman doesn't have a separate guider instrument, like other space telescopes do," Vila said.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026

The boundary of the observable universe is not merely the farthest distance our telescopes can currently reach.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 28, 2026

Despite Wallace’s critique, despite the fact that other astronomers with telescopes and observing sites as good as Lowell’s could find no sign of the fabled canals, Lowell’s vision of Mars gained popular acceptance.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan