decrypt
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
-
to decode (a message) with or without previous knowledge of its key
-
to make intelligible (a television or other signal) that has been deliberately distorted for transmission
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of decrypt
First recorded in 1935–40; de- + crypt(ogram)
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 immediate risk is a “harvest now, decrypt later” approach by bad actors, who are downloading large sets of encrypted data they can’t crack now—but could unlock once quantum computing algorithms are good enough.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
It then sends the response back to the VPN server, which encrypts it and sends it back to your device for you to decrypt.
From Salon ● Jun. 2, 2026
Users record from the Toosheh satellite TV channel onto a USB stick plugged into their set-top box, which they can then decrypt using a special app installed on their phone or computer.
From Barron's ● Mar. 13, 2026
But businesses and governments face a problem right now, as attackers could harvest encrypted information and decrypt it later when they do gain access to suitably powerful devices.
From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2025
The more data she had, the easier it was to decrypt the messages.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
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.
