plural ciphers
1
a
b
: one that has no weight, worth, or influence : nonentity
It was an odd fact that the financier, a cipher in his own home, could impress all sorts of people at the office.—
P. G. Wodehouse
P. G. WodehouseWhy did the family, I wondered, act as if Rita hardly existed? Was she that much of a cipher?—Andrew M. Greeley
Andrew M. Greeley2
a
: a method of transforming a text in order to conceal its meaning
secret communications written in cipher
compare code sense 3b
b
: a message in code
The cipher cannot be decoded without the key.
3
4
: a combination of symbolic letters
especially
: the interwoven initials of a name
coins that bore the cipher of the sultan
5
often cypher plural cyphers
a
: a circle formed by performers (such as rappers or hip-hop dancers) who take turns improvising in the middle often as part of a competition
Breakers go in a cypher one at a time to dance to the music and can also battle each other.—Emmanuel Adelekun
Emmanuel AdelekunCyphers have been an important part of rap culture since the beginning of hip-hop …—BBC Three
BBC Three… dancers are caught, lifted, and patted or slapped by the hands of other dancers in the cipher.—Stephanie L. Batiste
Stephanie L. Batiste
b
: a hip-hop song that features multiple rappers taking turns delivering verses
The cypher has evolved to become an effective tool to increase fame for up-and-coming artists …—Roderick Pullum
Roderick Pullum"Waterboyz" is a … cipher between … compatriots JID and J. Cole.—Mosi Reeves
Mosi Reeves
ciphered; ciphering
ˈsī-f(ə-)riŋ 
: to use figures in a mathematical process
all children should learn to read, write, and cipher—M. Pattison
M. Pattison1
: encipher
ciphered the letters that passed between the two heads of state
2
: to compute arithmetically
ciphered out the sum in his head
Synonyms
Examples of cipher in a Sentence
Noun
a cipher that can't be decoded
She was nothing more than a cipher.
Verb
were surprised by how much we had spent on the cruise after we had ciphered out the grand total
Recent Examples on the Web
Declan Gallagher and Chris Bellamy, EW.com, 31 Oct. 2024
Some sleuths alleged that one of the Zodiac's ciphers contained a reference to Bevilacqua, but Italian police reportedly closed their investigation into Bevilacqua in 2021.
—Jessica Sager, People.com, 23 Oct. 2024
Stephen Nash, New York Times, 25 July 2017
See all Example Sentences for cipher 
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Noun
In addition to the letters, the last of which arrived in 1974, the Zodiac sent out four ciphers that would supposedly reveal his identity.
—Declan Gallagher and Chris Bellamy, EW.com, 31 Oct. 2024
Some sleuths alleged that one of the Zodiac's ciphers contained a reference to Bevilacqua, but Italian police reportedly closed their investigation into Bevilacqua in 2021.
—Jessica Sager, People.com, 23 Oct. 2024
Verb
These remnants, signals from an earlier phase of our human condition, have been endlessly ciphered by generations of archaeologists in the Bears Ears region (which is named for twin buttes near its center).
—Stephen Nash, New York Times, 25 July 2017
See all Example Sentences for cipher
Dictionary Entries Near cipher
Cite this Entry
“Cipher.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cipher. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cipher
2 of 2 verb
ciphered; ciphering
-f(ə-)riŋ
1
: to use figures in calculating
2
: to change (a message) into cipher
Etymology
Noun
Middle English cipher "zero," from Latin cifra (same meaning), from Arabic ṣifr "empty"
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