decode
Americanverb (used with object)
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to translate (data or a message) from a code into the original language or form.
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to extract meaning from (spoken or written symbols).
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Television. to unscramble (an electronic signal) so as to provide a video picture for cable subscribers.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to convert (a message, text, etc) from code into ordinary language
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computing to convert (coded characters) from one form to another, as from binary-coded decimals to decimal numbers Compare encode
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electronics to convert (a coded electrical signal) into normal analogue components
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to analyse and understand the construction of words and phrases, esp in a foreign language
Other Word Forms
- decoder noun
Etymology
Origin of decode
Explanation
When you translate a message from symbols or code into language, you decode it. British code breakers worked during World War II to decode Germany's coded messages. You might need to decode a secret message sent by a spy, but some computer scientists also decode the symbols in computer languages into grammatically correct language. Sometimes older people don't understand the lingo that younger people are using — they might ask a grandchild to help them decode lines in a song, for example. When sound engineers translate between analog and digital signals, they also decode.
Vocabulary lists containing decode
All the Noise at Once
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Explain
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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.
Inference consists of two phases, known as prefill and decode.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026
So look for Nvidia to discuss how Groq LPUs will help broaden and customize its future chip portfolio to address training, prefill, and decode.
From Barron's • Mar. 13, 2026
"We then look at this dance through a microscope with a camera and decode from the wiggles what the robots are saying to us. It's very similar to how honey bees communicate with each other."
From Science Daily • Jan. 6, 2026
When someone cares, you don’t have to decode it.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 28, 2025
There were things to look for, an unspoken language of movement and form to decipher, passwords to exchange, and glances to decode.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
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.
