Telford

T1E1L1F4O1R1D2

proper noun

A characteristical surname.

OriginOld French taille fer →
Less commonScrabble 11
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Meanings

proper nounTelford (countable and uncountable, plural Telfords)

plural Telfords · alternative Talford · alternative Telfort

  1. countableA characteristical surname.
  2. countableuncountableA new town in Telford and Wrekin borough and the ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, named after Thomas Telford (OS grid ref SJ7008).
  3. countableuncountableA locality in the Shire of Moira, Victoria, Australia.
  4. A place in the United States:
    1. countableuncountableA borough in Bucks County and Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, named after Thomas Telford.
    2. countableuncountableA census-designated place in Washington County, Tennessee, named after state senator George Whitfield Telford.
    3. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Lincoln County, Washington, named after cattleman M. A Telford.
nounTelford (uncountable)

alternative Talford · alternative Telfort

  1. attributiveuncountableA road pavement having a surface of small stone rolled hard and smooth, distinguished from macadam road by its firm foundation of large stones with fragments of stone wedged tightly in the interstices.

    a Telford road

Origin

  1. Old Frenchtaille fer
  2. EnglishTelford

From Old French taille fer, meaning "(he who) cuts iron" or "iron-cleaver"; used as a nickname for a man who could cleave clean through the armour of his foe. The second syllable was eventually reanalysed as native English 'ford'. Cognate with Tolliver, Taillefer, Telfair, Tallaferro, Taliaferro, Tagliaferro. Compare Eisenhauer. * (road): Named after Thomas Telford, a famous civil engineer.

More words from Old French

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Telford. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Telford

MLA

“Telford.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Telford. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Telford,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Telford.

Source: Telford on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.