cipher1
/
ˈsʌɪfə/
n.
- a code.
▸a key to a code.
- dated a zero.
- an unimportant person or thing.
- a monogram.
v.
- encode (a message).
- archaic do arithmetic.
Etymology
ME: from OFr. cifre, based on Arab. ṣifr ‘zero’.
cipher2
n.
a continuous sounding of an organ pipe, caused by a defect.
v.
(of an organ pipe) sound continuously.
Etymology
C18: perh. from cipher1.