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What does cipher mean?

Definitions for cipher
ˈsaɪ fərci·pher

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word cipher.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. cipher, cyphernoun

    a message written in a secret code

  2. zero, 0, nought, cipher, cyphernoun

    a mathematical element that when added to another number yields the same number

  3. nothing, nil, nix, nada, null, aught, cipher, cypher, goose egg, naught, zero, zilch, zip, zipponoun

    a quantity of no importance

    "it looked like nothing I had ever seen before"; "reduced to nil all the work we had done"; "we racked up a pathetic goose egg"; "it was all for naught"; "I didn't hear zilch about it"

  4. cipher, cypher, nobody, nonentitynoun

    a person of no influence

  5. cipher, cypher, cryptograph, secret codeverb

    a secret method of writing

  6. code, encipher, cipher, cypher, encrypt, inscribe, write in codeverb

    convert ordinary language into code

    "We should encode the message for security reasons"

  7. calculate, cipher, cypher, compute, work out, reckon, figureverb

    make a mathematical calculation or computation

Wiktionary

  1. ciphernoun

    A numeric character.

  2. ciphernoun

    A method of transforming a text in order to conceal its meaning.

    The message was written in a simple cipher. Anyone could figure it out.

  3. ciphernoun

    A cryptographic system using an algorithm that converts letters or sequences of bits into ciphertext.

  4. ciphernoun

    Ciphertext; a message concealed via a cipher.

    The message is clearly a cipher, but I can't figure it out.

  5. ciphernoun

    A grouping of three digits in a number, especially when delimited by commas or periods:

    The probability is 1 in 1,000,000,000,000,000 uE000124356uE001 a number having five ciphers of zeros.

  6. ciphernoun

    A design of interlacing initials: a decorative design consisting of a set of interlaced initials.

  7. ciphernoun

    A fault in an organ valve which causes a pipe to sound continuously without the key having been pressed.

  8. ciphernoun

    A hip-hop jam session

  9. ciphernoun

    The path (usually circular) shared cannabis takes through a group, an occasion of cannabis smoking.

  10. cipherverb

    (regional and/or dated) To calculate.

    I never learned much more than how to read and cipher.

  11. ciphernoun

    Someone or something of no importance.

    You are just a cipher to me.

  12. ciphernoun

    Zero.

  13. Etymology: 14th century. From cyfre, cyffre (French chiffre), ultimately from (sifr) ‘zero, empty’, from (safara) ‘to be empty’. Compare zero.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. CIPHERnoun

    Etymology: chifre, Fr. zifra, Ital. cifra, low Lat. from an oriental root.

    Mine were the very cipher of a function,
    To find the faults, whose fine stands in record,
    And let go by the actor. William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure.

    If the people be somewhat in the election, you cannot make them nulls or ciphers in the privation or translation. Francis Bacon.

    As, in accounts, ciphers and figures pass for real sums, so names pass for things. Robert South, Sermons.

    Troy flam’d in burnish’d gold; and o’er the throne,
    Arms and the man in golden ciphers shone. Alexander Pope, Temp. of F.

    Some mingling stir the melted tar, and some
    Deep on the new-shorn vagrant’s heaving side,
    To stamp the master’s cipher, ready stand. James Thomson, Summer.

    In succeeding times this wisdom began to be written in ciphers and characters, and letters bearing the form of creatures. Walter Raleigh, History of the World.

    This book, as long liv’d as the elements,
    In cipher writ, or new made idioms. John Donne.

    He was pleased to command me to stay at London, to send and receive all his letters; and I was furnished with mine several ciphers, in order to it. John Denham, Dedication.

  2. To Cipherverb

    To write in occult characters.

    He frequented sermons, and penned notes: his notes he ciphered with Greek characters. John Hayward, on Edward VI.

  3. To Cipherverb

    To practice arithmetick.

    Etymology: from the noun.

    You have been bred to business; you can cipher: I wonder you never used your pen and ink. John Arbuthnot, Hist. of J. Bull.

Wikipedia

  1. Cipher

    In cryptography, a cipher (or cypher) is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption—a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is encipherment. To encipher or encode is to convert information into cipher or code. In common parlance, "cipher" is synonymous with "code", as they are both a set of steps that encrypt a message; however, the concepts are distinct in cryptography, especially classical cryptography. Codes generally substitute different length strings of characters in the output, while ciphers generally substitute the same number of characters as are input. There are exceptions and some cipher systems may use slightly more, or fewer, characters when output versus the number that were input. Codes operated by substituting according to a large codebook which linked a random string of characters or numbers to a word or phrase. For example, "UQJHSE" could be the code for "Proceed to the following coordinates." When using a cipher the original information is known as plaintext, and the encrypted form as ciphertext. The ciphertext message contains all the information of the plaintext message, but is not in a format readable by a human or computer without the proper mechanism to decrypt it. The operation of a cipher usually depends on a piece of auxiliary information, called a key (or, in traditional NSA parlance, a cryptovariable). The encrypting procedure is varied depending on the key, which changes the detailed operation of the algorithm. A key must be selected before using a cipher to encrypt a message. Without knowledge of the key, it should be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to decrypt the resulting ciphertext into readable plaintext. Most modern ciphers can be categorized in several ways By whether they work on blocks of symbols usually of a fixed size (block ciphers), or on a continuous stream of symbols (stream ciphers). By whether the same key is used for both encryption and decryption (symmetric key algorithms), or if a different key is used for each (asymmetric key algorithms). If the algorithm is symmetric, the key must be known to the recipient and sender and to no one else. If the algorithm is an asymmetric one, the enciphering key is different from, but closely related to, the deciphering key. If one key cannot be deduced from the other, the asymmetric key algorithm has the public/private key property and one of the keys may be made public without loss of confidentiality.

ChatGPT

  1. cipher

    A cipher is a method of transforming a message to conceal its meaning. It involves the use of an algorithm, which may include a variety of encryption strategies, to convert the letters and words into codes. This encryption process often requires a key to decode the message back into its original form. The term "cipher" can also refer to the resulting coded text or to the key used in the encoding and decoding process.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Ciphernoun

    a character [0] which, standing by itself, expresses nothing, but when placed at the right hand of a whole number, increases its value tenfold

  2. Ciphernoun

    one who, or that which, has no weight or influence

  3. Ciphernoun

    a character in general, as a figure or letter

  4. Ciphernoun

    a combination or interweaving of letters, as the initials of a name; a device; a monogram; as, a painter's cipher, an engraver's cipher, etc. The cut represents the initials N. W

  5. Ciphernoun

    a private alphabet, system of characters, or other mode of writing, contrived for the safe transmission of secrets; also, a writing in such characters

  6. Cipheradjective

    of the nature of a cipher; of no weight or influence

  7. Cipherverb

    to use figures in a mathematical process; to do sums in arithmetic

  8. Cipherverb

    to write in occult characters

  9. Cipherverb

    to get by ciphering; as, to cipher out the answer

  10. Cipherverb

    to decipher

  11. Cipherverb

    to designate by characters

  12. Etymology: [OF. cifre zero, F. Chiffre figure (cf. Sp.cifra, LL. cifra), fr. Ar. ifrun, afrun, empty, cipher, zero, fr. afira to be empty. Cf. Zero.]

Wikidata

  1. Cipher

    In cryptography, a cipher is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption—a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is encipherment. To encipher or encode is to convert information from plain text into code or cipher. In non-technical usage, a "cipher" is the same thing as a "code"; however, the concepts are distinct in cryptography. In classical cryptography, ciphers were distinguished from codes. Codes operated by substituting according to a large codebook which linked a random string of characters or numbers to a word or phrase. For example, "UQJHSE" could be the code for "Proceed to the following coordinates". When using a cipher the original information is known as plaintext, and the encrypted form as ciphertext. The ciphertext message contains all the information of the plaintext message, but is not in a format readable by a human or computer without the proper mechanism to decrypt it. The operation of a cipher usually depends on a piece of auxiliary information, called a key. The encrypting procedure is varied depending on the key, which changes the detailed operation of the algorithm. A key must be selected before using a cipher to encrypt a message. Without knowledge of the key, it should be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to decrypt the resulting ciphertext into readable plaintext.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Cipher

    sī′fėr, n. (arith.) the character 0: any of the nine figures: anything of little value, whether persons or things: a nonentity: an interweaving of the initials of a name: a secret kind of writing.—v.i. to work at arithmetic: to write in cipher: of an organ-pipe, to sound independent of the organ: (Shak.) to decipher.—ns. Cī′phering; Cī′pher-key, a key to a cipher or piece of secret writing. [O. Fr. cifre, Fr. chiffre—Ar. sifr, empty.]

Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms

  1. cipher

    Any cryptographic system in which arbitrary symbols (or groups of symbols) represent units of plain text of regular length, usually single letters; units of plain text are rearranged; or both, in accordance with certain predetermined rules. See also cryptosystem.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. cipher

    A preconcerted enigmatical system of communication. Much used in war when dispatches are liable to interception by the enemy,—both for written communication and for signaling.

Rap Dictionary

  1. ciphernoun

    In hip-hop parlance, the term refers to something like a jam session in which everyone contributes to the creative experience. Be they DJs, dancers, rappers or graffiti writers, all the different artists that collectively make up the culture of hip-hop can have their own cypher. When dancers cypher, you’ll see each taking a turn in the center of a circle, contributing a unique style, then resting. The center of circle is never empty and the energy of the cypher grows as the dancers push themselves into increasing levels of athleticism. Rappers cypher together huddled in a corner, rhyming a capella to handclaps or any ambient beats in the surrounding environment. "I was walkin' down the street about three o'clock, when I saw another MC at the end of the block, talkin' to kids tellin' em, how they had to get the dough, so I rolled right up in the cipher and said 'Yo!'" -- K-Os (Freeze)

  2. ciphernoun

    A pot-smoking session, or rotation. "yo can i get in on this cipher?"

Suggested Resources

  1. cipher

    Song lyrics by cipher -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by cipher on the Lyrics.com website.

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Anagrams for cipher »

  1. rechip

How to pronounce cipher?

How to say cipher in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of cipher in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of cipher in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of cipher in a Sentence

  1. Cyndi Ramirez:

    I think a lot of people who are not huge nail art loyalists find joy in being a little festive through press-ons, it takes the edge off of having to cipher through Pinterest or Instagram for inspo and then getting frustrated at the nail salon because they do n’t come out how you ’d expect. Plus they’re more affordable and you can pretty much guarantee they ’ll look great on you !

  2. Kazi Muhammad Ziauddin:

    He said there is no way we can open or scan his bag, at first he said 'This is an electric motor.' After further questioning he changed his mind and told us, 'These are cipher machines and very confidential.'.

  3. James Cason:

    We had a cipher code clerk go to a bar and be approached by a good looking person, when the wife of the (head of Marine detachment) went on vacation, two blondes knocked on the door and asked if he wanted company.

  4. Bernard Mannes Baruch:

    Age is only a number, a cipher for the records. A man can't retire his experience. He must use it. Experience achieves more with less energy and time.

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Translations for cipher

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"cipher." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 22 Dec. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/cipher>.

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