The Telephone System The telephone is one of the most creative and prized inventions in the world. It has advanced from its humble beginnings to its wireless communication technology today and for the future. The inhabitants of the earth have long communicated over a distance, which has been done by shouting from one hilltop or tower to another. The word "telephone" originated from a combination of two Greek words: "tele", meaning far off, and "phone", meaning voice or sound, and became the known term for "far- speaking." A basic telephone usually contains a transmitter, that transfers the caller's voice, and a receiver, that amplifies sound from