binary system
Americannoun
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a system involving only two elements, as 0 and 1 or yes and no.
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Mathematics. a system of counting or measurement whose units are powers of two.
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Astronomy. binary star.
Etymology
Origin of binary system
First recorded in 1825–35
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The new research found that the impact also expelled enough material from the binary system to slightly alter its path around the Sun.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 9, 2026
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 ● Dec. 31, 2025
This strange new world orbits around two stars at once, which dance around each other in what astronomers call a binary system.
From Space Scoop ● May 6, 2025
It’s a binary system; a choice of extremes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 17, 2024
These observations were made by adjusting a micrometer to a very powerful telescope, and were data sufficient for the determination of the orbit of the revolving star, should it be a binary system.
From Personal Recollections, from Early Life to Old Age, of Mary Somerville by Somerville, Mary
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
