"Teletext" means: A text-based information retrieval system using television sets with a suitable decoder; developed by the BBC.. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
Teletext
(UK, Ireland) A text-based information retrieval system using television sets with a suitable decoder; developed by the BBC.
Seen in the wild
🟡 Update from The Teletext Archive BBC2 from Friday 6th May 1988 📺 More at https://tvpres.com
🟡 Update from The Teletext Archive Central from Sunday 6th May 1990 📺 More at https://tvpres.com
I think 4-Tel and the regional magazines weren’t up and running for weeks afterwards. Anyone relying on it for PDC teletext VHS were screwed. Yes, and editorially I think Teletext UK Ltd put the main news on to C4 whi…
I’ve childishly been refreshing my feed and going on NewsNow to see if there’s any developments even though we’ve only had new owners 5 minutes. The modern day equivalent of going on Teletext/ Ceefax for updates. Fee…
(for full clarity, I'm not saying I was *good* at it - I have a face for radio and voice for Teletext - but I could at least read one and half listen to the other. "Blue Peter" style craft segments are my Kryptonite t…
Definitions
(UK, Ireland) A text-based information retrieval system using television sets with a suitable decoder; developed by the BBC.
"Teletext" means: A text-based information retrieval system using television sets with a suitable decoder; developed by the BBC.. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
"Teletext" means: A text-based information retrieval system using television sets with a suitable decoder; developed by the BBC.. Register: neutral, standard English, usable in most everyday contexts. Note the regional or dialect label (UK) — usage may sound odd outside that variety. A common non-native mistake is to use the word in the wrong register, or to assume one fixed meaning when it is actually polysemous; always check the surrounding register and the audience before producing it yourself. In formal writing, prefer a neutral synonym or a short descriptive phrase, and use this word only when you have heard or read it being used naturally in a comparable context.
“🟡 Update from The Teletext Archive BBC2 from Friday 6th May 1988 📺 More at https://tvpres.com”
— Bluesky· May 2026“🟡 Update from The Teletext Archive Central from Sunday 6th May 1990 📺 More at https://tvpres.com”
— Bluesky· May 2026“I think 4-Tel and the regional magazines weren’t up and running for weeks afterwards. Anyone relying on it for PDC teletext VHS were screwed. Yes, and editorially I think Teletext UK Ltd put the main news on to C4 which was unpopular. Eventually Bamber saved them :)”
— Bluesky· May 2026“I’ve childishly been refreshing my feed and going on NewsNow to see if there’s any developments even though we’ve only had new owners 5 minutes. The modern day equivalent of going on Teletext/ Ceefax for updates. Feel like a kid again! Good times!! #swfc”
— Bluesky· May 2026“(for full clarity, I'm not saying I was *good* at it - I have a face for radio and voice for Teletext - but I could at least read one and half listen to the other. "Blue Peter" style craft segments are my Kryptonite though.)”
— Bluesky· May 2026
Comments
For specific readers
Why is this section here?
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
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🗺️About Regional & Other slang
Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
See all Regional & Other slang on Slangora.
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Related terms
People also read
Semantically related
- glass teletype62%
(computing, slang, dated) A rudimentary videoterminal.
- telerecording60%
(television, UK, Irish, Commonwealth) A recording of a television broadcast made while it is being transmitted, especially by filming the picture from a monitor screen; the process of making such a recording.
- idiot box59%
(idiomatic, chiefly, US, and, Canada) Television.
- colour television59%
(countable) A television set that displays images in colour.
- TTY57%
A text display device, as used by the deaf to read voice communication converted to text by a communication assistant device (CA).