telegraph line
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: A physical wire or cable used to transmit telegraph and telephone signals over a distance.
Usage
A "telegraph line" refers specifically to the physical infrastructure—the wire or cable strung on poles or buried underground—that forms a circuit for sending electrical communication signals. It is the medium through which telegraph messages (and later, telephone calls) were conveyed.
Examples
Advanced Usage
- "to lay/string a telegraph line": To install the physical wire or cable.
- The company was contracted to string a telegraph line along the new railway route.
- "telegraph line outage/failure": A disruption in service due to a break or fault in the line.
- Communication was lost due to a telegraph line failure caused by heavy ice.
Variants and Related Words
- Telegraph wire: A more general synonym, often used interchangeably with "telegraph line."
- Telephone line: A wire used for telephone signals; this term largely replaced "telegraph line" as technology evolved, though the physical infrastructure was often shared or similar.
- Landline: A fixed-line telephone connection using physical wires, a modern descendant of the telegraph line concept.
- Telegraph pole / telephone pole: The pole used to support the wires of a telegraph or telephone line.
Synonyms
- Telegraph wire
- Communication line
- Wire (in historical/telegraphic context)
Related Phrases
- Down the line: This idiom, meaning "in the future" or "at a later point," originates from the idea of signals being sent along a telegraph or telephone line.
- We can make those changes down the line if necessary.
- Hold the line: An idiom meaning to wait, especially on the telephone, which derives from maintaining a connection on a telephone line. It is conceptually related to the physical line.
- Please hold the line while I transfer your call.
Noun
- the wire that carries telegraph and telephone signals