bar code

British  

noun

1. Also called: Universal Product Code.   UPC.  commerce a machine-readable arrangement of numbers and parallel lines of different widths printed on a package, which can be electronically scanned at a checkout to register the price of the goods and to activate computer stock-checking and reordering

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bar code Cultural  

1. A series of parallel lines that can be read by an optical scanner and decoded by a computer into usable information. The ten-line Universal Product Code (UPC) on the packaging of retail items is an example of this. The key to this code is the variation in line thickness and separation.

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Example Sentences

Sharma expected the count to take an hour using bar code scanners, but they malfunctioned in the cold, forcing his team to pull an all-nighter and count manually.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

For ticket inspections and to pass through barriers, the app will generate a bar code to scan.

From BBC • Aug. 31, 2025

No more scrolling through your phone to find that bar code, or scrambling through your glove compartment to find that parking pass.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2025

The machines scan the bar code on the back of the membership card, showing the membership record, including photo and status, Callans said.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 17, 2024

This food had never worn a label or bar code or price tag, and yet I knew almost everything there was to know about it.

From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan