radiotelephone

American  

[rey-dee-oh-tel-uh-fohn] / ˌreɪ di oʊˈtɛl əˌfoʊn /

noun

1. a telephone in which sound or speech is transmitted by means of radio waves instead of through wires or cables. RT

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verb (used with or without object)

radiotelephoned, radiotelephoning

1. to telephone by radiotelephony.

radiotelephone British  

/ ˌreɪdɪəʊˌtɛlɪˈfɒnɪk, ˌreɪdɪəʊtɪˈlɛfənɪ, ˌreɪdɪəʊˈtɛlɪˌfəʊn /

noun

1. Also called: radiophone.   wireless telephone.  a device for communication by means of radio waves rather than by transmitting along wires or cables

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verb

1. to telephone (a person) by radiotelephone

Other Word Forms

• radiotelephonic adjective
• radiotelephony noun

Etymology

Origin of radiotelephone

First recorded in 1905–10; radio- + telephone

Example Sentences

“We can clearly see the name of the ship Hangong Yu 303,” he said into a radiotelephone, reading out its coordinates on the ship’s bridge.

From The Guardian • Oct. 21, 2020

The ceremonial aspect continued with the raising of the American flag and a radiotelephone conversation with President Richard Nixon.

From The Guardian • Aug. 26, 2012

Worth more than $35 million, he has five cars, including a chauffered Rolls-Royce equipped with radiotelephone, a penthouse in Manhattan, a 13-acre country house at Amagansett, N.Y., his own game preserve and a $200,000 yacht.

From Time Magazine Archive

We connect him through State Department radiotelephone circuits to his lawyers in Algiers.

From Time Magazine Archive

They were preparing to leave when another flash from Washington came over the radiotelephone.

From Tom Swift and The Visitor from Planet X by Appleton, Victor [pseud.]

Related Words

• transmission
• wireless