cryptanalysis

[ krip-tuh-nal-uh-sis ]
/ ˌkrɪp təˈnæl ə sɪs /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR cryptanalysis ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the procedures, processes, methods, etc., used to translate or interpret secret writings, as codes and ciphers, for which the key is unknown.
the science or study of such procedures.Compare cryptography(def 1).

QUIZZES

HEED THE VOX POPULI, AND TAKE THIS WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ!

Test your memory on these verbal firecrackers from the week of June 29 to July 5!
Question 1 of 7
anchorite
a granular metamorphic rock.
a person who has retired to a solitary place for a life of religious seclusion.
a hobble or fetter for a horse or other animal.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of cryptanalysis

An Americanism dating back to 1920–25; crypt(ogram) + analysis

OTHER WORDS FROM cryptanalysis

crypt·an·a·lyt·ic [krip-tan-l-it-ik] /ˌkrɪp tæn lˈɪt ɪk/, adjectivecrypt·an·a·lyt·i·cal·ly, adverbcrypt·an·a·lyst [krip-tan-l-ist] /krɪpˈtæn l ɪst/, noun

Words nearby cryptanalysis

crypt, crypt abscesses, crypt of iris, crypt-, cryptaesthesia, cryptanalysis, cryptanalytics, cryptanalyze, cryptectomy, cryptesthesia, cryptic
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to cryptanalysis

cryptography

British Dictionary definitions for cryptanalysis

cryptanalysis
/ (ˌkrɪptəˈnælɪsɪs) /

noun

the study of codes and ciphers; cryptography

Derived forms of cryptanalysis

cryptanalytic (ˌkrɪptænəˈlɪtɪk), adjectivecryptanalyst, noun

Word Origin for cryptanalysis

C20: from cryptograph + analysis
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