cipher

[ sahy-fer ]

noun

1. a secret method of writing or recording data, such as by substituting or adding letters or numbers, using specially formed symbols, or the like; code: cryptography.

   The spies exchanged messages using a complex cipher.

   The encryption software creates unbreakable ciphers for secure communication.

2. writing, or a piece of writing, done by a secret method; a coded message:

   Hostile agents intercepted the cipher and began trying to figure out its meaning.

3. the key to a secret method of writing:

   After a year of studying the coded messages, the analysts were no closer to discovering the cipher.

4. someone or something that is not understood; mystery or enigma:

   I just can’t figure him out—he’s a complete cipher to me.

5. zero ( def 1 ).
6. a person or thing of no influence or importance; nonentity:

   Having lost the party leadership, she is now a mere cipher on the political scene.

7. Usually cypher.
   1. a performance by a group of rappers, hip-hop artists, or break dancers who take turns improvising individual verses, dances, etc.
   2. an individual verse, dance, etc., that is part of such a performance.
8. any of the Arabic numerals, such as 1, 2, or 3, or any number written with such numerals, such as 476.
9. Arabic numerical notation collectively:

   The date is MXML in Roman numerals, or 1950 in cipher.

10. a combination of letters, such as the initials of a name, in one design; monogram:

    The cipher for Queen Elizabeth II had an E entwined with an R for regina, Latin for “queen,” on either side of a Roman numeral II.

verb (used without object)

1. to use figures or numerals arithmetically; do arithmetic:

   He had never learned to read or write, but he could cipher.

2. to write messages in or as if in a secret code.

verb (used with object)

1. to convert into code; encrypt:

   The program works by ciphering or scrambling the data.

2. to figure out the meaning of; interpret or decode (often used with out ):

   Using a good phrase book, the tourist was able to cipher out what people were saying.

3. to calculate numerically; figure (often used with out ):

   I tried to cipher out the interest on the loan, compounded over five years.

cipher

/ ˈsaɪfə /

noun

1. a method of secret writing using substitution or transposition of letters according to a key
2. a secret message
3. the key to a secret message
4. an obsolete name for zero
5. any of the Arabic numerals (0, 1, 2, 3, etc, to 9) or the Arabic system of numbering as a whole
6. a person or thing of no importance; nonentity
7. a design consisting of interwoven letters; monogram
8. music a defect in an organ resulting in the continuous sounding of a pipe, the key of which has not been depressed

verb

1. to put (a message) into secret writing
2. intr (of an organ pipe) to sound without having the appropriate key depressed
3. rare.
   to perform (a calculation) arithmetically

Other Words From

• ci·pher·a·ble adjective
• ci·pher·er noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of cipher¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English siphre, from Medieval Latin ciphra, from Arabic ṣifr “empty, zero”; translation of Sanskrit śūnyā “empty”

Word History and Origins

Origin of cipher¹

C14: from Old French cifre zero, from Medieval Latin cifra, from Arabic sifr zero, empty

Example Sentences

As a gastroenterologist and gut microbiome researcher at the University of Washington School of Medicine, I have dedicated my career to decoding the cipher of how food affects this microbial community within your gut.

From Salon

If Link is a cipher, an increasingly androgynous hero meant to be a stand-in for players the world over, Princess Zelda in “Echoes of Wisdom” feels more fully drawn.

From Los Angeles Times

And Bello wonders today if the opening puzzle — a cipher challenge — can overwhelm some of those new to the space.

From Los Angeles Times

Here, a guest book may be anything but, and cipher puzzles may reside in knickknacks while shields may turn out to be more than just decoration.

From Los Angeles Times

In the so-called "cipher case", the prosecution argued that Khan had leaked a classified cable sent to Pakistan’s ambassador in Washington.

From BBC