Abstract: A telephone answering system including a locally or remotely programmable voice synthesizer for transmitting messages is disclosed. The answering system is connected to a particular (local) telephone and is actuated in the usual manner by an incoming call to transmit a predetermined message. The message consists of a sequence of individual words, pauses, or other message segments which are stored in the synthesizer and transmitted in a desired sequence determined by pressing corresponding keys of either the phone to which the system is connected or any remote phone. As the operator of the system presses each key to program a desired message, the word or other message segment is immediately transmitted for the user to hear, thereby providing positive verification of entry. Changes or corrections may be made at any time to one or more individual message segments without the necessity of re-entering the entire message.