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television: television: [20] Television means etymologically ‘far vision’. Its first element, tele-, comes from Greek téle ‘far off’, a descendant of the same base as télos ‘end’ (source of English talisman and teleology). Other English compounds formed from it include telegraph [18], telegram [19], telepathy [19] (etymologically ‘far feeling’, coined by the psychologist Frederic Myers in 1882), telephone [19], telescope [17] (a word of Italian origin), and telex [20] (a blend of teleprinter and exchange). Television itself was coined in French, and was borrowed into English in 1907.

Of its abbreviations, telly dates from about 1940, TV from 1948.
=> talisman, teleology
division (n.): late 14c., from Old French division, from Latin divisionem (nominative divisio), from divid-, stem of dividere (see divide). Military sense is first recorded 1590s. Mathematical sense is from early 15c. The mathematical division sign supposedly was invented by British mathematician John Pell (1611-1685) who taught at Cambridge and Amsterdam.
envision (v.): 1914, from en- (1) "make, put in" + vision (n.). Related: Envisioned; envisioning. Earlier (1827) is envision'd in sense "endowed with vision."
improvision (n.): "want of forethought," 1640s, from assimilated form of in- (1) "not, opposite of" + provision.
invision (n.): "want of vision," 1640s, from in- (1) "not, opposite of" + vision.
misdivision (n.): 1835, from mis- (1) + division.
Panavision (n.): 1955, proprietary name of a type of wide-screen lens, word formed from elements of panorama + vision.
prevision (n.): 1610s, "foresight," from French prévision (14c.), from Late Latin praevisionem (nominative praevisio), noun of action from past participle stem of Latin praevidere "see first, see beforehand," from prae- "before" (see pre-) + videre "to see" (see vision).
provision (n.): late 14c., "a providing beforehand, action of arranging in advance" (originally in reference to ecclesiastical appointments made before the position was vacant), from Old French provision "precaution, care" (early 14c.), from Latin provisionem (nominative provisio) "a foreseeing, foresight, preparation, prevention," noun of action from past participle stem of providere "look ahead" (see provide). Meaning "something provided" is attested from late 15c.; specific sense of "supply of food" is from c. 1600.
provision (v.): "to supply with provisions," 1787, from provision (n.). Related: Provisioned; provisioning.
provisional (adj.): "as a temporary arrangement for the present," c. 1600, from provision (n.) + -al (1), or else from Middle French provisionnal (15c.), from Old French provision. The notion is of something that will "provide for present needs." Related: Provisionally.
provisioner (n.): 1814, agent noun from provision (v.).
provisions (n.): "supply of food," c. 1600; see provision.
revision (n.): 1610s, "act of revising," from French révision, from Late Latin revisionem (nominative revisio) "a seeing again," noun of action from past participle stem of Latin revidere (see revise). Meaning "a product of revision" is from 1845.
revisionism (n.): 1903, from revision + -ism. Originally in Marxist jargon, "rejection of gradual introduction of socialism." Revisionist is from 1850 (adj.); 1854 (n.); in the historical sense from 1934, originally with reference to the causes of World War I.
subdivision (n.): early 15c., "process of dividing into smaller parts;" mid-15c., "portion of land that has been divided," noun of action from subdivide. Sense of "plot of land broken into lots for housing development" is from 1911.
supervision (n.): 1630s, from Medieval Latin supervisionem (nominative supervisio), noun of action from past participle stem of supervidere "oversee, inspect" (see supervise).
television (n.): 1907, as a theoretical system to transmit moving images over telegraph or telephone wires; formed in English or borrowed from French télévision, from tele- + vision.
Television is not impossible in theory. In practice it would be very costly without being capable of serious application. But we do not want that. On that day when it will be possible to accelerate our methods of telephotography by at least ten times, which does not appear to be impossible in the future, we shall arrive at television with a hundred telegraph wires. Then the problem of sight at a distance will without doubt cease to be a chimera. ["Telegraphing Pictures" in "Windsor Magazine," 1907]
Other proposals for the name of a then-hypothetical technology for sending pictures over distance were telephote (1880) and televista (1904). The technology was developed in the 1920s and '30s. Nativized in German as Fernsehen. Shortened form TV is from 1948. Meaning "a television set" is from 1941. Meaning "television as a medium" is from 1927.
Television is the first truly democratic culture -- the first culture available to everyone and entirely governed by what the people want. The most terrifying thing is what people do want. [Clive Barnes, "New York Times," Dec. 30, 1969]
vision (n.): c. 1300, "something seen in the imagination or in the supernatural," from Anglo-French visioun, Old French vision "presence, sight; view, look, appearance; dream, supernatural sight" (12c.), from Latin visionem (nominative visio) "act of seeing, sight, thing seen," noun of action from past participle stem of videre "to see."

This is from the productive PIE root *weid- "to know, to see" (cognates: Sanskrit veda "I know;" Avestan vaeda "I know;" Greek oida, Doric woida "I know," idein "to see;" Old Irish fis "vision," find "white," i.e. "clearly seen," fiuss "knowledge;" Welsh gwyn, Gaulish vindos, Breton gwenn "white;" Gothic, Old Swedish, Old English witan "to know;" Gothic weitan "to see;" English wise, German wissen "to know;" Lithuanian vysti "to see;" Bulgarian vidya "I see;" Polish widzieć "to see," wiedzieć "to know;" Russian videt' "to see," vest' "news," Old Russian vedat' "to know").

The meaning "sense of sight" is first recorded late 15c. Meaning "statesman-like foresight, political sagacity" is attested from 1926.
visionary (adj.): "able to see visions," 1650s (earlier "perceived in a vision," 1640s), from vision + -ary. Meaning "impractical" is attested from 1727. The noun is attested from 1702, from the adjective; originally "one who indulges in impractical fantasies."
Vistavision (n.): form of wide-screen cinematography, 1954; see vista + vision.
phonovision: "A system of television, invented by John Logie Baird but never publicly demonstrated, whereby vision and sound signals could be recorded on discs similar to gramophone records", 1920s; earliest use found in Punch.