Standard Lemma guide

tele-

prefix · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈtɛl.ɪ/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈtɛl.ə/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: /ˈtɛl.ə/

1

prefix

Meaning 1

over a distance

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • telegram
  • telerobot

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

prefix

Meaning 2

television

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • telecast
  • telefantasy
  • telethon

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

prefix

Meaning 3

telegraph

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • telepost
  • teletape
  • teletypewriter

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

prefix

Meaning 4

telephone

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • telecheck
  • telesales

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

prefix

Meaning 5

teleport

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • telebooth

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

prefix

Meaning 6

telecommunication

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • telemarketing

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Ancient Greek τῆλε (têle, “at a distance, far off, far away, far from”).

Across languages

Translations

31 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: tele- — over a distance
  • Czech: tele- — over a distance
  • Danish: tele- — over a distance
  • Finnish: kauko- — over a distance
  • Finnish: tele- — over a distance
  • French: télé- — over a distance
  • Galician: tele- — over a distance
  • Georgian: ტელე- (ṭele-) — over a distance
  • German: fern- — over a distance
  • Greek: τηλε- (tile-) — over a distance
  • Hungarian: táv- — over a distance
  • Italian: tele- — over a distance
  • Malay: tele- — over a distance
  • Norwegian Bokmål: tele- — over a distance
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: tele- — over a distance
  • Persian: دور (dur-) — over a distance
  • Polish: tele- — over a distance
  • Portuguese: tele- — over a distance
  • Russian: теле- (tele-) — over a distance
  • Spanish: tele- — over a distance
  • Swedish: fjärr- — over a distance
  • Armenian: հեռուստա- (heṙusta-) — relating to television
  • Bulgarian: теле- (tele-) — relating to television
  • Catalan: tele- — relating to television
  • Czech: tele- — relating to television
  • French: télé- — relating to television
  • Greek: τηλε- (tile-) — relating to television
  • Hungarian: tele- — relating to television
  • Polish: tele- — relating to television
  • Russian: теле- (tele-) — relating to television
  • Spanish: tele- — relating to television