Meanings
telex1
plural telexes · alternative Telex
- countableuncountableA network of teletypes.
present singular third person telexes · participle present telexing · participle past telexed · past telexed · alternative Telex
Telex2
- A convention for encoding Vietnamese text for transmission across telex systems.
- computingInput method for Vietnamese text based on this convention.
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna character printer connected to a telegraph that operates like a typewriter
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
telex · noun, verb
From genericization of Telex Printergram and Telex, derived as a blend of tele- (“telegraph, teletype, teleprinter, etc.”) + exchange.
Full word history & related roots →Telex · proper noun
- Frenchtélex
- VietnameseTelex
- EnglishTelex
From Telex Printergram, a service offered beginning 15 Aug. 1932 by the British General Post Office's Central Telegraph Office, derived as a blend of tele- (“telegraph, teletype, teleprinter, etc.”) + exchange. Subsequently branded in the United States by Western Union and then similarly genericized. In reference to the Vietnamese conventions, a borrowing of Vietnamese Telex, from French télex, from the English term.
More words from Vietnamese, French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic تِلِكْس, تِلِكْس
- تِلِكْس (tiliks)teletype network
- تِلِكْس (teliks)teletype network
Bulgarian те́лекс
- те́лекс (téleks)teletype network
Chinese Mandarin 電傳 /电传
- 電傳 /电传 (diànchuán)teletype network
Danish telex
- telexteletype network
Dutch telex
- telexteletype network
Finnish kaukokirjoitin
- kaukokirjoitinteletype network
French télex
- télexteletype network
German Telex
- Telexteletype network
Greek τέλεξ
- τέλεξ (télex)teletype network
Indonesian teleks
- teleksteletype network
Italian telex
- telexteletype network
Japanese テレックス, 加入電信
- テレックス (terekkusu)teletype network
- 加入電信 (kanyū denshin)teletype network
Korean 텔렉스, 가입전신
- 텔렉스 (tellekseu)teletype network
- 가입전신 (gaipjeonsin)teletype network
Persian تلکس
- تلکس (teleks)teletype network
Polish teleks
- teleksteletype network
Romanian telex
- telexteletype network
Russian те́лекс
- те́лекс (téleks)teletype network
Swahili teleksi
- teleksiteletype network
Swedish telex
- telexteletype network
Turkish teleks
- teleksteletype network
Ukrainian те́лекс
- те́лекс (téleks)teletype network
Vietnamese viễn tín
- viễn tínteletype network
Rhymes & wordplay
Sounds the same
Anagrams
Cite this entry
telex. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telex
“telex.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telex. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “telex,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/telex.
Source: telex on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.