CIPHER


Meaning of CIPHER in English

ci ‧ pher BrE AmE , cypher /ˈsaɪfə $ -ər/ noun

[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: cifre , from Medieval Latin cifra , from Arabic sifr 'empty, zero' ]

1 . [uncountable and countable] formal a system of secret writing SYN code :

an expert in ciphers

messages written in cipher

2 . [countable] someone who is not important and has no power or influence:

At work, she was a cipher, a functionary, nothing more.

3 . [countable] literary the number 0 SYN zero

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.