telephoto

T1E1L1E1P3H4O1T1O1

adjective

Of or pertaining to a lens system used to produce an enlarged image of a distant object.

Less commonScrabble 14

Meanings

adjectivetelephoto (not comparable)
  1. not comparableOf or pertaining to a lens system used to produce an enlarged image of a distant object.
nountelephoto (plural telephotos)

plural telephotos

  1. A photograph taken through a telephoto lens.
  2. colloquialA telephoto lens.
verbtelephoto (third-person singular simple present telephotos, present participle telephotoing, simple past and past participle telephotoed)

present singular third person telephotos · participle present telephotoing · participle past telephotoed · past telephotoed

  1. Synonym of telephotograph.

    Synonyms: telephotograph

Synonyms & antonyms

verbSynonym of telephotograph.

More synonyms by meaning

nouna photograph made with a telephoto lens

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*kʷelh₁-
  2. Ancient Greekτῆλε (têle)
  3. Englishtele-
  4. Proto-Indo-European*bʰeh₂-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*bʰéh₂os
  6. Proto-Hellenic*pʰáwos
  7. Ancient Greekφᾰ́ος (phắos)
  8. Ancient Greekφῶς (phôs)
  9. Ancient Greekφωτο- (phōto-)
  10. Englishphoto-
  11. Proto-Indo-European*gerbʰ-
  12. Proto-Hellenic*grə́pʰō
  13. Ancient Greekγράφω (gráphō)
  14. Englishphotographclip.
  15. Englishphoto
  16. Englishtelephoto

From tele- + photo.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

telephoto. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telephoto

MLA

“telephoto.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telephoto. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “telephoto,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telephoto.

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