crypto

1 of 2

noun

cryp·​to ˈkrip-(ˌ)tō 

plural cryptos

1

: cryptocurrency

A specialty finance firm … is the first to offer brokers the option to get their commissions paid up front, in crypto, underscoring how digital coins are becoming a more mainstream part of financial transactions.

—Jennifer Schonberger

—often used before another noun

crypto assets

the crypto market

2

: cryptography sense 2

3

: a person who adheres or belongs secretly to a party, sect, or other group

And jaws dropped, he said, when he explained the theory that Christopher Columbus was a "crypto" or hidden Jew.

—Kim Vo

crypto-

2 of 2

combining form

variants or before a vowel crypt-

1

: hidden : covered

cryptogenic

2

: hidden by dissembling : unavowed

crypto-fascist

3

: cryptographic

cryptanalysis

Examples of crypto in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Attorney General for the District of Columbia recently filed a lawsuit against Athena Bitcoin, a major crypto ATM operator, alleging that 93% of deposits to the company’s crypto ATMs were scam-related. —Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 25 Dec. 2025

Fortune 500 CEOs warn otherwise by Preston Fore JPMorgan to allow crypto trading for institutional clients in latest embrace of the sector by Carlos Garcia CEO Daily is compiled and edited by Joey Abrams, Jim Edwards, and Lee Clifford. —Diane Brady, Fortune, 24 Dec. 2025

What began with early adopters—many of them bodybuilders and biohackers—using crypto to buy the drug through Chinese contacts on Telegram has morphed into a network of slick websites where U.S. resellers take PayPal or credit cards. —Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 23 Dec. 2025

The ecosystem of marketplaces for Chinese-speaking crypto scammers hosted on the messaging service Telegram have now grown to be bigger than ever before, according to a new analysis from the crypto tracing firm Elliptic. —Andy Greenberg, Wired News, 23 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

(senses 1 & 2) by shortening; (sense 3) independent use of crypto-

Combining form

combining form from Greek kryptós "hidden, secret" — more at crypt

First Known Use

Noun

1946, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Medical Definition

crypto

noun

cryp·​to ˈkrip-(ˌ)tō 

: cryptosporidium sense 2

also : cryptosporidiosis