telegram
/ˈtelɪɡræm/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈtelɪɡræm/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈte-lə-ˌgram Southern also -grəm/ (ame, mw)
telegram — noun
- telegramsingular
- telegramsplural
1. a short written message delivered on a piece of yellow paper, sent through an el
a short written message delivered on a piece of yellow paper, sent through an electrical wire system by a telegraph machine — the main way to send urgent news quickly before telephones and the internet became common.
Grandma still keeps the telegram her father sent from the war front in 1944.
keep + telegram (preserve as a memento)
The messenger boy handed a yellow telegram to Mrs. Ito at the front door.
hand + telegram + to + person (delivery scene)
Renata sent a telegram to her family when gold was discovered nearby.
The telegram from Aunt Li said she would arrive the following Tuesday.
文法句型
send + telegram + to + person
receive + telegram + from + person
by telegram
用法筆記
Now mostly historical. Telegrams were widely used between the 1850s and the 1980s but have been replaced by phone calls, email, and text messages. In modern fiction or historical writing, 'telegram' signals a pre-digital setting.
常見錯誤
telegram — verb
- telegrampresent simple I / you / we / they
- telegrams3rd person singular
- telegraming-ing form
- telegramedpast simple
1. to send a short written message to someone using a telegraph machine, so that it
to send a short written message to someone using a telegraph machine, so that it is printed onto paper and delivered to the recipient.
The general telegrammed headquarters to request urgent medical supplies.
telegram + to + place
Alessia telegrammed her mother that she would arrive on the evening train.
telegram + person + that-clause
Jin's family could not afford a long-distance phone call, so they telegrammed instead.
Tariq telegrammed his office that the deal had gone through.
文法句型
telegram + to + person/place
telegram + person + that-clause
telegram + person + noun
用法筆記
This verb is very rare in modern English; 'telegraph' is the more standard verb form. For contemporary situations, use 'text', 'message', or 'email' instead. The past tense 'telegrammed' and '-ing' form 'telegramming' double the final 'm'.