How to use telegraph in a sentence

40 example sentences · noun, verb

Telegraph means synonym of telegraphy, any process for transmitting arbitrarily long messages over a long distance using a symbolic code. Example: “The first message transmitted by telegraph in the United States was WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT.”

Examples of telegraph by meaning

nounSynonym of telegraphy, any process for transmitting arbitrarily long messages over a long distance using a symbolic...

This strict sense of telegraph developed from French usage for Napoleon's overland semaphore network but rather arbitrarily excludes similar Chinese and other signalling networks.

nounThe electrical device gradually developed in the early 19th century to transmit messages (telegrams) using Morse code...

The first message transmitted by telegraph in the United States was WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT.
Most lone wolves had a moll at any rate—women were their ruin—but if the Bat had a moll, not even the grapevine telegraph could locate her.1920, Mary Roberts Rinehart, Avery Hopwood, chapter I, in The Bat: A Novel from the Play (Dell Book; 241), New York, N.Y.: Dell Publishing...
The thing that had killed them was the telegraph.1941, George Orwell, The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius/Part I

verbTo use a telegraph; to send a message by telegraph.

In "The Boscombe Valley Mystery," Sherlock Holmes telegraphs Watson: "Have you a couple of days to spare?1957 May, Neil Caplan, “Railways in English Fiction”, in Railway Magazine, page 349

verbTo clearly communicate to another nonverbally (whether by gesture, a change in attitude, or any other sign), and...

Her frown telegraphed her displeasure.
He took a jab and telegraphed his punch so loudly that I was able to land a solid right hand to his stomach.2007, James A. Rozhon, The Man in the Maze
He is telegraphing a shift away from wartime crisis mode back toward the aura of a calm, paternalistic leader shielding Russians from the dangers of the world.2022 June 30, Anton Troianovski, “Patient and Confident, Putin Shifts Out of Wartime Crisis Mode”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

More sentences with telegraph

Resignedly, I telegraphed back that it was all right with me if he insisted.From the entry resignedly
Several telegraph operators received electric shocks and some telegraph stations even caught fire.2023 November 15, Prof. Jim Wild, “This train was delayed because of bad weather in space”, in RAIL, number 996, page 30. From the entry catch fire
A neg is not an insult but a negative social value judgment that is telegraphed.2007 February 6, Erik von Markovik, The Mystery Method: How to Get Beautiful Women Into Bed, St. artin's Press, →ISBN, →OL, page 94. From the entry neg
When I was born, family and friends came from all over, thanks to the bush telegraph.2007, "From Sudan to supermodel stardom," msnbc.com, 28 Aug. (retrieved 19 Sep. 2008). From the entry bush telegraph
At 4 or 5, he learned to dial by using the hookswitch like a telegraph key.2007 August 20, Douglas Martin, “Joybubbles, 58, Peter Pan of Phone Hackers, Dies”, in New York Times. From the entry hookswitch
Poor Chief Magalie hadn't heard the rumours on the bush telegraph.2007, Obie Oberholzer, Long Ago Way: In the Footsteps of Alphons Hustinx. From the entry gramadoela
Undersea telegraph cables are laid between Taiwan and Fujhou, Fujian Province.2005, Wu Mi-cha, editor, 台湾史10講 [Ten Short Talks on Taiwan History], →ISBN, →OCLC, page 95. From the entry Fujhou
Somehow, over the mukluk telegraph, I got the message and came into town and got him.2003, Jeff Davis, Fifty-Five Years in the Alaskan Bush: The John Swiss Story, →ISBN, page 92. From the entry mukluk telegraph
That's what the telegraph key in its modern form was called.1986, E. L. Doctorow, World's Fair, page 282. From the entry bug
Working both sides of the stream, they got native chieftains to pass the word by jungle telegraph.1958 August 11, “Live Virus in the Jungle”, in Times. From the entry jungle telegraph
Chapters on prerailway transportation and the telegraph complete the volume.2022, Harry Clark, A Venture in History, page 140. From the entry prerailway
That along with the friends that I was talking to formed quite a mukluk telegraph for keeping track of the competition.2015, Burt Bomhoff, Iditarod Alaska: Life of a Long Distance Sled Dog Musher, →ISBN. From the entry mukluk telegraph
But I'd heard stories about them through the moccasin telegraph.2014, Edmund Metatawabin, Alexandra Shimo, Up Ghost River, →ISBN. From the entry moccasin telegraph
"Telegraph Avenue" might best be described as Chabonesque.2012 September 7, Jess Walter, “'Telegraph Avenue,' by Michael Chabon”, in SFGate, archived from the original on 08 Sep 2012; quoted in…. From the entry Chabonesque
You have to telegraph the notion that everyone wants you.2008, Faye Flam, The Score: How the Quest for Sex Has Shaped the Modern Man, Penguin Group, →ISBN, →OL, page 31. From the entry DHV
It spooks the mossies on the overhead telegraph wire.2004, Troy Blacklaws, Karoo Boy, page 78. From the entry mossie
When the Badgers cut the telegraph wires they cannot think of anything better to do than string them into their balalaykas.2001, Boris Thomson, The Art of Compromise: The Life and Work of Leonid Leonov, University of Toronto Press, →ISBN, page 49. From the entry balalayka
Ellington telegraphed to Breen, “Your Porgy and Bess the superbest, singing the gonest, acting the craziest, Gershwin the greatest.”2000, James M. Hutchisson, quoting Duke Ellington, Dubose Heyward: A Charleston Gentleman and the World of Porgy and Bess, University…. From the entry gonest
I'm goin' downtown, the telegraph to hire, And see if they need a colored man to greasen up the wire.1995, Irwin Silber, Earl Robinson, Songs of the Great American West, page 148. From the entry greasen
Holt Thomas gave some details of a projected scheme of communication which combined the telephone or telegraph with the aeroplane.1919, The Electrical Review, volume 84, H. Alabaster, Gatehouse & Company, page 538. From the entry aerogram
Outside, the little birds on the telegraph wires looked in at the moving picture and smiled at one another.1918, Gelett Burgess, Ain't Angie Awful!, Chapter 8. From the entry pretzel
Room two seventy, right?” The kid looked meaningfully at Bellamy, the look on his face telegraphing words to the effect of: whatever butters your biscuit.2014, Olive Balla, chapter 33, in An Arm and a Leg, Adams Basin, N.Y.: The Wild Rose Press, →ISBN. From the entry whatever butters your biscuit
Most had refused to believe the gruesome news brought to the stockade walls by the moccasin telegraph of the Crow, Sioux and Cheyenne.2013, Terry C. Johnston, Red Cloud's Revenge. From the entry moccasin telegraph
And the jungle telegraph at Bryant Park is alive with rumors that the show's biggest name, Lauren Conrad, will be here any day.2008, Lisa Marsh "‘Hills’ Under Tents," New York Post, 5 Feb. (retrieved 19 Sep. 2008). From the entry jungle telegraph
At this point your telegraph operator, sitting at your right, goes "Ticky-tick-tickety-de-tick-tick," with his bug, as he calls his transmitter, and looks at you expectantly.1938, Paul Gallico, Farewell to Sport, page 257. From the entry bug
The telegraph, telephone, and then radio made it easier for governments to intervene in the conduct of military operations, inserting that 'long screwdriver' so resented by modern commanders.2009, Richard Holmes, Churchill's Bunker: The Cabinet War Rooms and the Culture of Secrecy in Wartime London, Yale University Press. From the entry long screwdriver
Despite the new gadgetry, these journalists are actually rediscovering telegraphese — the clipped (ideally witty) style that flourished because of word limits imposed by an earlier technology, the telegraph.2008 January 21, Noam Cohen, “Campaign Reporting in Under 140 Taps”, in New York Times. From the entry telegraphese
Next day, Smerdyakov is having several meetings at Soviet embassy and returning in mid-afternoon with top enjoyful mind frame and telegraph cable from SMIRD in Moscow.2006, Martin Sixsmith, I Heard Lenin Laugh. From the entry enjoyful
A hoodlumish mob of Democrats attacked a rival speaker at Smithfield, and the Republican chairman telegraphed Governor Russell for troops, a request with which he complied.1979, H. Leon Prather, Resurgent Politics and Educational Progressivism in the New South, page 194. From the entry hoodlumish
It seemed that as soon as a party moved, the area "jungle telegraph" would alert those in the habit of making "moonlight requisitions" to become active.1973, John Postlewait, Harry Knudson, “Some experiences in land acquisition for a land disposal system for sewage effluent”, in…. From the entry moonlight requisition
Here the protection consists of a 50lb per mile cadmium copper trip-wire mounted on short telegraph posts on both sides of the line, 4ft above rail level.1961 November, “Talking of Trains: Aircraft on rail tracks”, in Trains Illustrated, page 650. From the entry telegraph post
In winter the place was deserted and, with cold damp wind from the sea shrieking in the telegraph wires, the general feeling could be one of desolation.1954 March, W. A. Tuplin, “Recollections of the Wirral Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 169. From the entry shriek

Meaning of telegraph

noun Synonym of telegraphy, any process for transmitting arbitrarily long messages over a long distance using a symbolic code.
noun The electrical device gradually developed in the early 19th century to transmit messages (telegrams) using Morse code; the entire system used to transmit its messages including overhead lines and transoceanic cables.
noun A visible or audible cue that indicates to an opponent the action that a character is about to take.

Full definition of telegraph

Questions about telegraph in a sentence

How do you use telegraph in a sentence?: Telegraph is used as a noun and verb. For example: “The first message transmitted by telegraph in the United States was WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT.”
What is a short sentence with telegraph?: “Her frown telegraphed her displeasure.”
What does telegraph mean?: Telegraph means synonym of telegraphy, any process for transmitting arbitrarily long messages over a long distance using a symbolic code.

Adapted from Wiktionary: telegraph (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use telegraph in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/telegraph. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.