binary

American  

[bahy-nuh-ree, -ner-ee] / ˈbaɪ nə ri, -nɛr i /

adjective

1. consisting of, indicating, or involving two.

2. Mathematics.

   1. of or relating to a system of numerical notation to the base 2, in which each place of a number, expressed as 0 or 1, corresponds to a power of 2. The decimal number 58 appears as 111010 in binary notation, since 58 = 1 × 2 5 + 1 × 2 4 + 1 × 2 3 + 0 × 2 2 + 1 × 2 1 + 0 × 2 0 .

   2. of or relating to the digits or numbers used in binary notation.

   3. of or relating to a binary system.

   4. (of an operation) assigning a third quantity to two given quantities, as in the addition of two numbers.

3. Computers. of, relating to, or written in binary code; programmed or encoded using only the digits 0 and 1.

   All executable programs on the computer are stored in binary files.

4. Chemistry. noting a compound containing only two elements or groups, as sodium chloride, methyl bromide, or methyl hydroxide.

5. Metallurgy. (of an alloy) having two principal constituents.

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noun

• binaries
  plural

1. a whole composed of two.

2. Mathematics. a system of numerical notation to the base 2, in which each place of a number, expressed as 0 or 1, corresponds to a power of 2.

   to convert decimal to binary.

3. Also called binary number. Mathematics. a number expressed in the binary system of notation.

4. Computers. binary code.

5. Computers. an executable file stored in binary format.

6. Astronomy. binary star.

binary British  

/ ˈbaɪnərɪ /

adjective

1. composed of, relating to, or involving two; dual

2. maths computing of, relating to, or expressed in binary notation or binary code

3. (of a compound or molecule) containing atoms of two different elements

4. metallurgy (of an alloy) consisting of two components or phases

5. (of an educational system) consisting of two parallel forms of education such as the grammar school and the secondary modern in Britain

6. maths logic (of a relation, expression, or operation) applying to two elements of its domain; having two argument places; dyadic

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noun

1. something composed of two parts or things

2. astronomy See binary star

3. short for binary weapon

binary Scientific  

/ bī′nə-rē /

1. Having two parts.

2. Mathematics Based on the number 2 or the binary number system.

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binary Cultural  

1. Anything composed of two parts. In modern computers, information is stored in banks of components that act like switches. Since switches can be either on or off, they have a binary character, and we say that the computer uses “binary arithmetic” to do its work.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• binaries
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of binary

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin bīnārius, equivalent to bīn(ī) ( see bin-) + -ārius -ary

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Explanation

Something that can be broken into two categories is binary. Binary means something close to dual or double. You can remember what binary means if you know that bi- means two. Black and white are often set up as a binary, as are light and dark and good and evil. One binary we see all the time is the male and female symbols you see on bathroom doors. In computing, binary is a code of zeros and ones (computer programming) also known as base two. A binary is also a double star — two stars revolving around each other.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

binary binaries

“At its core, this is a binary outcome: war, or no war, and the market has not resolved which way it falls,” Aaron Kildow of Sparta Commodities says in a note.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

“I’m very, very against using the financial markets to create binary speculative bets.”

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 10, 2026

"I think you would be surprised to hear members on these topics. I think they are much more closer than simply binary positions that are irreconcilable," he said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026

As the book moves across history and demonstrates how the internet has completely upended the binary, they also show what hasn’t changed about the way fans relate to their favorites.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

There should therefore be, as there are, many cases of binary stars, one component a red giant, the other a white dwarf.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

What Baldwin is lamenting is our tendency to fall back on binaries — right and wrong, good and evil — rather than to struggle with complexity.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026

What this means is that the prevailing binaries are not — can never be — enough.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026

The most widely accepted astrophysical explanation for this background is a population of supermassive black hole binaries gradually spiraling inward.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 27, 2026

One of the stellar binaries, known as G203-47, is now officially the ninth closest white dwarf to the Sun.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

The assemblage of close binaries in this neighborhood is very curious.

From Pleasures of the telescope An Illustrated Guide for Amateur Astronomers and a Popular Description of the Chief Wonders of the Heavens for General Readers by Garrett Putman Serviss

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