From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Telephone exchange \Tel`e*phone ex*change"\
A central office in which the wires of telephones from local
subscribers may be connected by switches to other local
telephones or to long-distance lines, to permit transmission
of conversation or data.
Note: In the late 1990's the traditional copper wires
connecting local telephones to the telephone exchange
have begun to be replaced with optical fiber
connections.
[Webster 1913 Suppl. +PJC]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
exchange \ex*change"\ ([e^]ks*ch[=a]nj"), n. [OE. eschange,
eschaunge, OF. eschange, fr. eschangier, F. ['e]changer, to
exchange; pref. ex- out + F. changer. See {Change}, and cf.
{Excamb}.]
1. The act of giving or taking one thing in return for
another which is regarded as an equivalent; as, an
exchange of cattle for grain.
[1913 Webster]
2. The act of substituting one thing in the place of another;
as, an exchange of grief for joy, or of a scepter for a
sword, and the like; also, the act of giving and receiving
reciprocally; as, an exchange of civilities or views.
[1913 Webster]
3. The thing given or received in return; esp., a publication
exchanged for another. --Shak.
[1913 Webster]
4. (Com.) The process of setting accounts or debts between
parties residing at a distance from each other, without
the intervention of money, by exchanging orders or drafts,
called bills of exchange. These may be drawn in one
country and payable in another, in which case they are
called foreign bills; or they may be drawn and made
payable in the same country, in which case they are called
inland bills. The term bill of exchange is often
abbreviated into exchange; as, to buy or sell exchange.
[1913 Webster]
Note: A in London is creditor to B in New York, and C in
London owes D in New York a like sum. A in London draws
a bill of exchange on B in New York; C in London
purchases the bill, by which A receives his debt due
from B in New York. C transmits the bill to D in New
York, who receives the amount from B.
[1913 Webster]
5. (Law) A mutual grant of equal interests, the one in
consideration of the other. Estates exchanged must be
equal in quantity, as fee simple for fee simple.
--Blackstone.
[1913 Webster]
6. The place where the merchants, brokers, and bankers of a
city meet at certain hours, to transact business; also,
the institution which sets regulations and maintains the
physical facilities of such a place; as, the New York
Stock Exchange; a commodity exchange. In this sense the
word was at one time often contracted to {'change}
[1913 Webster +PJC]
{Arbitration of exchange}. See under {Arbitration}.
{Bill of exchange}. See under {Bill}.
{Exchange broker}. See under {Broker}.
{Par of exchange}, the established value of the coin or
standard of value of one country when expressed in the
coin or standard of another, as the value of the pound
sterling in the currency of France or the United States.
The par of exchange rarely varies, and serves as a measure
for the rise and fall of exchange that is affected by the
demand and supply. Exchange is at par when, for example, a
bill in New York, for the payment of one hundred pounds
sterling in London, can be purchased for the sum. Exchange
is in favor of a place when it can be purchased there at
or above par.
{Telephone exchange}, a central office in which the wires of
any two telephones or telephone stations may be connected
to permit conversation.
Syn: Barter; dealing; trade; traffic; interchange.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
telephone exchange
n 1: a workplace that serves as a telecommunications facility
where lines from telephones can be connected together to
permit communication [syn: {central}, {telephone exchange},
{exchange}]
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