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

plural

binaries

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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Etymology

Origin of binary

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

Example Sentences

A nova happens in a close binary system when a white dwarf, the dense leftover core of a star, pulls gas from a nearby companion.

From Science Daily

“Not to say you can have it all, but far too often we look at our lives or careers in a binary,” she says.

From MarketWatch

“There is a good guy and a bad guy that’s very clear and very binary,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times

The markets’ yes/no binary for contracts creates cleaner hedges and investable signals for topics like Fed decisions and litigation outcomes, Ryan says.

From The Wall Street Journal

The pure plays might produce asymmetric returns, but they also face binary outcomes.

From MarketWatch