cypher
[
sahy
-fer]
/ˈsaɪ fər/
noun, verb (used without object), verb (used with object)
,
Chiefly British
1.
cipher
.
British Dictionary definitions for
cypher
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
(sense 1)
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
9.
to put (a message) into secret writing
10.
(
intransitive
) (of an organ pipe) to sound without having the appropriate key depressed
11.
(
rare
) to perform (a calculation) arithmetically
Word Origin
C14: from Old French
cifre
zero, from Medieval Latin
cifra,
from Arabic
sifr
zero, empty
cypher
/
ˈsaɪfə
/
noun, verb
1.
a variant spelling of
cipher