decoder
[dee-koh-der]
- a person who decodes messages or the like.
- a device for decoding cryptograms, codes, or the like, as an electric or electronic apparatus that transforms arbitrary input signals into letters, words, etc.
- Navigation. an electronic circuit designed to respond only to certain signals and to reject others.
- Computers. a circuit designed to produce a single output when actuated by a certain combination of inputs.
- Television. a box attached to a television set containing circuitry to unscramble encoded signals, as cable-television programs or closed captions, so that the signals can be displayed on the screen.
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Origin of decoder
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for decoder
Contemporary Examples
Adam Hanft is a decoder of the consumer culture and our branded planet.
Historical Examples
When the message was typed by the decoder Ihjel hovered over it, reading each word as it appeared on the paper.
Planet of the DamnedHarry Harrison
Tom felt a pang of worry as he dressed the next morning, and then relieved the man on duty at the decoder.
Tom Swift and The Visitor from Planet XVictor Appleton
A bell signal from the electronic brain brought them rushing to the decoder.
Tom Swift and The Visitor from Planet XVictor Appleton
decoder
[dē-kō′dər]
- An electronic or software device that converts telecommunication signals from their transmitted form into a form interpretable to other devices or to human beings.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.