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telescopic

/ˈtɛləˌskɑpɪk/
IPA guide

If it has a lens that can magnify extremely far-away objects, it's telescopic. Another way objects can be telescopic is if they are made from a series of tubes that slide inside each other.

Telescopes are the most obviously telescopic things — they magnify distant objects, like the moon, and sometimes have a series of tubes that slide out. Picture a pirate's telescopic spyglass, one type of telescope, which expands so the pirate can peer through it. If you use a camera with a telescopic lens, don’t stand too close to your subject because the lens might bonk them in the nose. Telescopic also describes something that’s only visible with a telescope, like a far-away star.

Definitions of telescopic
  1. adjective
    visible only with a telescope
    “a bright star with a telescopic companion”
    synonyms:
    seeable, visible
    capable of being seen; or open to easy view
  2. adjective
    capable of discerning distant objects
    “a telescopic eye”
    telescopic vision”
    synonyms:
    farsighted, presbyopic
    able to see distant objects clearly
  3. adjective
    having parts that slide one within another
    “a telescopic antenna”
    “a telescopic drinking cup”
    synonyms:
    collapsable, collapsible
    capable of collapsing or being collapsed
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