binary-coded decimal

British  

noun

1.  BCD.  a number in binary code written in groups of four bits, each group representing one digit of the corresponding decimal number

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binary coded decimal Scientific  

1. A code in which a string of four binary digits represents each decimal number 0 through 9 as a means of preventing calculation errors due to rounding and conversion. For example, since the binary equivalent of 3 is 0011 and the binary equivalent of 6 is 0110, 36 is represented as 0011 0110.

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Example Sentences

Benson and Tabbot had developed a sequence of mathematical operations that allowed computers to rapidly convert a binary-coded decimal number such as “0010 0000 0010” into the more compact form “11001010.”

From Washington Post • Mar. 28, 2014