password

American  

[pas-wurd, pahs-] / ˈpæsˌwɜrd, ˈpɑs- /

noun

1. a secret word or expression used by authorized persons to prove their right to access, information, etc.

   Synonyms:

   watchword

2. a word or other string of characters, sometimes kept secret or confidential, that must be supplied by a user in order to gain full or partial access to a computer, computer system, or electronic device.

---

password British  

/ ˈpɑːsˌwɜːd /

noun

1. a secret word, phrase, etc, that ensures admission or acceptance by proving identity, membership, etc

2. an action, quality, etc, that gains admission or acceptance

3. a sequence of characters used to gain access to a computer system

---

Etymology

Origin of password

First recorded in 1810–20; pass + word

Example Sentences

This is what will take up the bulk of your time, because people invariably forget things like the login and password to their mortgage servicer’s website that they access once a year for their statements.

From MarketWatch

“Oh, let’s see…this week my sister put her phone through the dishwasher, my mom lost all her passwords, and a Norwegian prince wanted to leave his fortune to my cousin.”

From Literature

She explains that I have to create an account, starting with a username and password.

From Literature

The weight of the password, chosen, settled into Coal’s body, making his shoulders slump toward the floor.

From Literature

The password she used for her Netflix account is not in publicly known databases but might be in others.

From BBC

Related Words

• identification