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Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

signalese en · NOUN

Etymology

Etymology tree English signal Proto-Indo-European *-iskos Proto-Germanic *-iskaz Proto-West Germanic *-iskbor. Late Latin -iscus ▲ Vulgar Latin -iscus Latin -ēnsis Old French -eisbor. Middle English -eys English -ese English signalese From signal + -ese.

Meanings

  1. (uncountable) Words and abbreviations used by radio operators and other signalmen to clarify the letters being sent and received, such as the RAF phonetic alphabet.
    • The signalese for 'S/L' I could decipher, but the NMI defeated me, until I learned that it referred to the fact, an oddity to Americans, that I had 'No Middle Initial'. 1967, Lawrence Wright, The Wooden Sword, page 164:
    • The signal "dit-dah-dit- dit-dit" which, in signalese meant "wait", was heard a lot while we attempted to decipher what it was the operator on the other end 1990, Ken Bradstreet, Hellcats:
    • The commodore's staff prepares the necessary message using a standardised jargon used by the Navy, sometimes referred to as 'signalese'. 2006, Ian Pfennigwerth, A Man of Intelligence: The Life of Captain Eric Nave, Australian Codebreaker, page 47: