cypher

American  

[sahy-fer] / ˈsaɪ fər /

noun

1. Chiefly British. a variant of cipher.

2. Also cipher

   1. a performance by a group of rappers, hip-hop artists, or break dancers who take turns improvising individual verses, dances, etc.

      The show ended with a freestyle cypher featuring the rappers from the headliner and the two opening acts.

   2. an individual verse, dance, etc., that is part of such a performance.

      She rose to stardom when her cypher that dissed two other male artists went viral.

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cypher British  

/ ˈsaɪfə /

noun

1. a variant spelling of cipher

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Etymology

Origin of cypher

First recorded in 1995–2000

Explanation

A cypher is a message written in a secret code. Spies during World War II sometimes communicated using cyphers. If you use a cypher to send your friend a message, it may take her a while to figure out what you're trying to tell her. Some cyphers substitute numbers or symbols for letters, and you need a key to decipher — or interpret — them. Another kind of cypher is an unimportant person who's blank or devoid of personality — you might call a lifeless character in a book a cypher. The word has an Arabic root, sifr, "zero, empty, or nothing."

Example Sentences

"The design incorporates Her Majesty's Royal Cypher, a stylised St Edward's Crown and the Auxiliary Territorial Service emblem, acknowledging her wartime service and lifelong sense of duty," the mint added.

From BBC • Feb. 6, 2026

Nozick was ardent that most would prefer reality, but is it possible that Cypher got a few things right?

From Salon • Apr. 3, 2025

Maybe Cypher intends Betty’s skin to stand in for the otherness of immigrants like Saeeda, her grandmother, and more specifically, her great-aunt Nuha.

From New York Times • May 28, 2023

Cypher gave birth to their daughter Bailey in 1997 and son Beckett in 1998.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 20, 2023

A few dozen men and women from the Government Code and Cypher School gathered for a sort of dress rehearsal.

From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin