cipher

C1 · Advanced Countable noun Literary · Formal

n. a person who has no power or whose character is not clear to others.

n. a person of no influence, importance, or distinct personality; a nonentity.

“He felt like a cipher in the large company, just a number that nobody noticed.”

“Despite his high-ranking title, he was a mere cipher, with all actual policy decisions being made by his subordinates.”

C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Music Slang

n. a circle of rappers or dancers who take turns showing their skills.

n. an informal gathering of rappers, beatboxers, or breakdancers in a circle to jam or improvise together.

“After the concert, a group of local rappers started a cipher on the street corner.”

“The underground event culminated in an intense cipher where each emcee had to improvise over a shifting breakbeat.”

C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Mathematics Archaic

n. an old word for the number zero.

n. a mathematical symbol for zero; the absence of quantity.

“In the old ledger, the accountant marked the empty balance with a cipher.”

“The manuscript uses a unique glyph for the cipher, distinguishing it from the other Arabic numerals in the sequence.”

C2 · Proficiency Mathematics Archaic · Dialect

v. to do math or solve a problem using numbers.

v. to perform mathematical calculations or arithmetic.

“The schoolboy spent the afternoon learning to cipher on his slate.”

“He was known in the village for his ability to cipher large sums in his head without the aid of a ledger.”

C1 · Advanced Technical

v. to turn a message into a secret code.

v. to convert a message into ciphertext using a specific algorithm.

“The diplomat had to cipher the report before sending it to the capital.”

“Standard protocols require the operator to cipher all sensitive transmissions before they are broadcast over open frequencies.”