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PlainSpell

telly

/ˈtɛli/noun, adjective

telly is spelled T-E-L-L-Y: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.6 times per million words in written English, the 22,362nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, telly means “Television” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of telly is tellies; Wiktionary also lists tellys (nonstandard).

How many letters and syllables are in telly?

Letters5: T-E-L-L-Y
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing1.6 times per million words; the 22,362nd most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is telly?

Telly appears 1.6 times per million words in written English, the 22,362nd most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce telly?

  • /ˈtɛli/

Telly has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-telly.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Words people confuse with telly

Also written: tele.

Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).

Forms of telly

  • tellies plural
  • tele
  • more telly comparative
  • most telly superlative

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does telly mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    CommonwealthIrelandUKcolloquialTelevision.

    Not much on telly tonight, as usual!

  2. 2

    CommonwealthIrelandUKcolloquialA television set.

    We've got a new flat-screen telly.

  3. 3

    CommonwealthIrelandUKcolloquialTelegraph.

  4. 4

    CommonwealthIrelandUKcolloquialTelephone.

  5. 5

    CommonwealthIrelandUKcolloquialTeleport.

  6. 6

    CommonwealthIrelandUKcolloquialTelecommunication.

  7. 7

    CanadaCommonwealthIrelandUKUScolloquialslangA hotel or motel.

    I'm staying at the telly this weekend.

adjective

  1. 1

    CommonwealthIrelandUKcolloquialinformalInclined to telling (by explicitly stating facts), instead of showing (by conveying an impression so that events are described in the narrative).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Telly in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchtélé, téloche (television (medium) – see also television)
Portuguesetevê (television (medium) – see also television)
Spanishtele (television (medium) – see also television)
GermanGlotze, Fernseher, Flimmerkiste (television set – see also television)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does telly come from?

Shortened form of tele(vision) + -y.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after telly