decode

American  

[dee-kohd] / diˈkoʊd /

verb (used with object)

decoded, decoding

1. to translate (data or a message) from a code into the original language or form.

2. to extract meaning from (spoken or written symbols).

3. Television. to unscramble (an electronic signal) so as to provide a video picture for cable subscribers.

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verb (used without object)

decoded, decoding

1. to work at decoding.

decode British  

/ diːˈkəʊd /

verb

1. to convert (a message, text, etc) from code into ordinary language

2. computing to convert (coded characters) from one form to another, as from binary-coded decimals to decimal numbers Compare encode

3. electronics to convert (a coded electrical signal) into normal analogue components

4. to analyse and understand the construction of words and phrases, esp in a foreign language

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Other Word Forms

• decoder noun

Etymology

Origin of decode

First recorded in 1895–1900; de- + code

Example Sentences

Given that my rant is disguised as a question, it takes him a moment to decode.

From Literature

Encoding converts digital data into these pages, while decoding translates them back into usable information.

From Science Daily

Scientists have spent years decoding the honey bee "waggle dance," a highly sophisticated form of communication.

From Science Daily

CPUs can excel in this kind of sequential computing, but what you’d really like to have are purpose-built chips that can handle decode cheaply and efficiently, without, for example, the need for pricey off-chip memory.

From Barron's

AI inference computing is divided into two main tasks: pre-fill, or the process by which a model interprets a user prompt, and decode, by which the model generates a response, one word at a time.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• clear up
• figure out
• interpret
• solve
• translate
• unravel
• unscramble
• untangle