encryption

noun

en·​cryp·​tion in-ˈkrip-shən 

en-

plural encryptions

1

: the act or process of encrypting something : a conversion of something (such as data) into a code or cipher

The regulations … make it harder to provide automatic encryption of information as it passes through the dozens of links in a typical Internet connection …

—Paul Wallich

… a hacker slips into a system, then puts encryption controls in place that locks users out.

—Elizabeth Millard

2

: a code or cipher produced by encrypting something

Artificial intelligence can decode encryptions that previously could not be cracked.

—Ana Swanson

Examples of encryption in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

One of the world’s premier security organizations has canceled the results of its annual leadership election after an official lost an encryption key needed to unlock results stored in a verifiable and privacy-preserving voting system. —ArsTechnica, 22 Nov. 2025

These include 256-bit AES encryption on all data processed, an audit log that tracks all ticket changes, daily backups, and SSL certification. —PC Magazine, 21 Nov. 2025

Quantum doesn’t just threaten Bitcoin, of course, but all banking encryption. —Jim Edwards, Fortune, 19 Nov. 2025

Since the hijacking, Dallas has upgraded its 173 sirens, installing what the city claims is one of the most advanced encryption systems in the country. —CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1953, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for encryption

• ascription
• conscription
• decryption
• description
• egyptian
• inscription
• prescription
• proscription
• subscription
• transcription
• circumscription
• misdescription