1951, originally a proprietary name in U.S., from tele- + prompter. The equivalent British proprietary name is Autocue.
Entries linking to teleprompter
tele-
before vowels tel-, word-forming element meaning "far, far off, operating over distance" (also, since c. 1940, "television"), from Greek tele "far off, afar, at or to a distance," related to teleos (genitive telos) "end, goal, completion, result," from PIE root *kwel- (2) "far" in space or time.
prompter n.
1540s, "one who or that which incites to action," agent noun from prompt (v.)). Earlier was promptator (mid-15c.), from Medieval Latin. Meaning "one who helps a speaker or reciter" is from 1590s; the specific theatrical sense is from c. 1600.