often attributive
1
a
: a strong rope especially of 10 inches (25 centimeters) or more in circumference
b
: a cable-laid rope
c
: a wire rope or metal chain of great tensile strength
d
: a wire or wire rope by which force is exerted to control or operate a mechanism
2
3
a
: an assembly of electrical conductors insulated from each other but laid up together (as by being twisted around a central core)
b
: cablegram
also
: a radio message or telegram
4
: something resembling or fashioned like a cable
a fiber-optic cable
5
a
: cable television
a house with cable
b
: a cable infrastructure used to provide services other than television
—often used before another noun
cable Internet
cable telephony
cabled; cabling
ˈkā-b(ə-)liŋ 
1
: to fasten with or as if with a cable
2
: to provide with a cable or cables
3
: to telegraph by submarine cable
4
: to make into a cable or into a form resembling a cable
: to communicate by a submarine cable
cabler
noun
ˈkā-b(ə-)lər
Examples of cable in a Sentence
Noun
The bridge is held up by cables.
Their company supplied cable for the project.
We need more cable to hook up the computers.
Verb
She cabled the news to the United States.
She cabled her parents for money.
The soldiers cabled back to headquarters.
Recent Examples on the Web
Danielle Directo-Meston, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 May 2024
All critics and jeering old folks need is a platform (cable TV, Instagram, a tattered soap box) to discredit the movement as the performative act of feckless snowflakes and spoiled children.
—Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 3 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for cable 
Noun
Fans outside Brazil can livestream the big event online on a cable streaming service that carries TV Globo or through a Virtual Private Network (VPN).
—Danielle Directo-Meston, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 May 2024
All critics and jeering old folks need is a platform (cable TV, Instagram, a tattered soap box) to discredit the movement as the performative act of feckless snowflakes and spoiled children.
—Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 3 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for cable
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cable.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near cable
Cite this Entry
“Cable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cable. Accessed 8 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cable
1 of 2 noun
ca·ble
ˈkā-bəl
1
: a very strong thick rope, wire, or chain
2
: a wire or wire rope by which force is applied to operate a piece of machinery
brake cable
3
: a bundle of electrical wires held together usually around a central core
4
5
cable
2 of 2 verb
cabled; cabling
ˈkā-b(ə-)liŋ
1
: to fasten or provide with a cable
2
: to telegraph by cable
Biographical Definition
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