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code
[ kohd ]
/ koʊd /
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noun
verb (used with object), cod·ed, cod·ing.
verb (used without object), cod·ed, cod·ing.
Genetics. to specify the amino acid sequence of a protein by the sequence of nucleotides comprising the gene for that protein: a gene that codes for the production of insulin.
Computers. to write computer code.
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Origin of code
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Old French, from Latin cōdex “book”; see codex
OTHER WORDS FROM code
Words nearby code
coda, cod-act, co-day, codder, coddle, code, code blue, code book, codec, codeclination, code dating
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use code in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for code
code
/ (kəʊd) /
noun
a system of letters or symbols, and rules for their association by means of which information can be represented or communicated for reasons of secrecy, brevity, etcbinary code; Morse code See also genetic code
a message in code
a symbol used in a code
a conventionalized set of principles, rules, or expectationsa code of behaviour
a system of letters or digits used for identification or selection purposes
verb (tr)
to translate, transmit, or arrange into a code
Word Origin for code
C14: from French, from Latin cōdex book, codex
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for code
code
[ kōd ]
A system of signals used to represent letters or numbers in transmitting messages.
The instructions in a computer program. Instructions written by a programmer in a programming language are often called source code. Instructions that have been converted into machine language that the computer understands are called machine code or executable code. See also programming language.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for code
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.