fax

3 synonyms for fax, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.

Noun — A document sent electronically over a phone line to be printed at the other end, or the machine that sends and receives such documents.

Synonyms

Rare, literary or technical

Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.

facsimile telecopy telefax

Synonyms by Meaning

1. noun

A document sent electronically over a phone line to be printed at the other end, or the machine that sends and receives such documents.

“Please send the signed contract by fax.”

facsimile telecopy

2. verb

To send a document using a fax machine.

“Can you fax me the invoice today?”

facsimile telefax

How to use fax

The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.

send a fax fax machine fax number

Increasingly old-fashioned; mostly survives in legal, medical, and government offices.

Etymology

From Middle English fax, from Old English feax (“hair, head of hair”), from Proto-West Germanic *fahs, from Proto-Germanic *fahsą (“hair, mane”), from Proto-Indo-European *poḱsom (“hair”, literally “that which is combed, shorn, or plucked”), from Proto-Indo-European *peḱ- (“to comb, shear, pluck”). Cognate with Dutch v...

Full origin of fax →

Frequently asked questions

What does “fax” mean?

The word “fax” means a document sent electronically over a phone line to be printed at the other end, or the machine that sends and receives such documents. In plain terms, a way of sending documents over phone lines, once common in offices before email took over.

How do you pronounce “fax”?

“Fax” is pronounced faks (/fæks/ in IPA).

How do you use “fax” in a sentence?

Here is “fax” used in a sentence: “Please send the signed contract by fax.”

What part of speech is “fax”?

Depending on how it is used, “fax” can be a noun and a verb.

Is “fax” a common word?

“Fax” is an uncommon word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

How many meanings does “fax” have?

“Fax” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a document sent electronically over a phone line to be printed at the other end, or the machine that sends and receives such documents.

What is the difference between a fax and an email?

A fax transmits a document as an image over a telephone line to be printed by a receiving machine, while an email sends digital text and files over the internet without needing a physical printout at either end. Fax was the standard for instant document transmission before email and digital scanning became widespread.

Is faxing still used today?

Fax machines are used far less than in previous decades but remain in use in certain industries, such as healthcare, law, and government, where fax is still accepted for official or legally binding documents. Most everyday communication has shifted to email and digital file sharing.

Is fax short for facsimile?

Yes, fax is a shortened form of facsimile, which refers to an exact copy of a document. The word originally referred to the copy itself before becoming the common name for both the technology and the machine.

People also searched

facsimile telefax telecopy

Nearby words

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