newswire
UK[ˈnjuːzwaɪə]US[ˈnuːzwaɪər]
n
A service that provides news stories and articles, typically in electronic form, to newspapers, broadcasters, and other organizations.
n
The news reports or articles distributed by such a service.
Morpheme Breakdown
news
wire
news
information
wire
transmission
Etymology
The word 'newswire' is a 20th-century compound formed from the nouns 'news' and 'wire'. Its formation directly reflects the technology of its era, where 'wire' specifically alluded to telegraph and teleprinter networks used for rapid long-distance communication. The term 'wire service' emerged for agencies like the Associated Press that distributed news via telegraph wires. 'Newswire' thus logically combines the content ('news') with the dominant transmission method ('wire'), creating a term for the service itself. While the technology has evolved from physical wires to digital feeds, the term persists, retaining its core logic of a centralized news distribution system.
Analysis
Structure: news (information) + wire (transmission)
- news: From Middle English 'newes', a plural of 'newe' (new thing). Origin: Old English 'nīwe', from Proto-Germanic 'newjaz'. Functional role: The core semantic element, indicating recent information or reports.
- wire: From Old English 'wīr' (metal drawn out into a thread). Functional role: A metaphorical element, referring to the means of transmission (originally telegraph or cable services).
Examples
The journalist received an urgent alert from the newswire.
The story was picked up by major newswires within minutes.
He works for an international financial newswire.