telly
/ˈtɛli/ noun, adjective
Forms tellies tellys tele
- noun Television. “Not much on telly tonight, as usual!”
- noun A television set. “We've got a new flat-screen telly.”
- noun Telegraph.
- noun Telephone.
- noun Teleport.
- noun Telecommunication.
- noun (US, Canada, chiefly MTE, slang) A hotel or motel. “I'm staying at the telly this weekend.”
- adjective (informal, chiefly of a literary work) Inclined to telling (by explicitly stating facts), instead of showing (by conveying an impression so that events are described in the narrative).
Synonyms
tube TV television receiver television television set tv set idiot box boob tube goggle box
Etymology
Shortened form of tele(vision) + -y.
Shortened form of (ho)tel and/or (mo)tel + -y.
From tell + -y, related to the writing advice show, don't tell.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “telly”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details