decoding

American  

[dee-koh-ding] / diˈkoʊ dɪŋ /

noun

1. the act, process, or result of extracting meaning or usable information, as from a code, written or spoken symbols, or an electronic signal.

   The device that performs the decoding is called a digital to analog converter.

   Recent decodings of the hieroglyphs at Palenque refer to dates beyond the end of the Mayan calendar.

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adjective

1. relating to the process of extracting meaning or usable information, as from a code or an electronic signal.

   The decoding algorithm will have to discern a valid signal from the noise.

Etymology

Origin of decoding

First recorded in 1895–1900; decod(e) ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun; decod(e) ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective

Example Sentences

He advanced Ornette Coleman’s “harmolodics”—a radical shift in thinking about melody, harmony and group interaction—within Ronald Shannon Jackson’s Decoding Society.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

Mark Mannucci, director of the documentary “American Masters: Decoding Watson,” compared him to King Lear, a man “at the height of his powers and, through his own character flaws, was brought down.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 7, 2025

Decoding, in simple terms, is the process of interpreting data from numerous physical qubits to determine and correct errors.

From Barron's • Oct. 24, 2025

Decoding mysteries is his driving compulsion, and if decoding the enigma of human interaction is part of that – something solo living never requires him to practice – so be it.

From Salon • Mar. 26, 2025

I ran to the Decoding Room with Beryl and John.

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

Related Words

• adaptation
• explanation
• reading
• rendering
• rendition
• transcription
• version