public-key
noun
pub·lic-key
ˈpə-blik-ˈkē 
often attributive
: a cryptographic element that is the publicly shared half of an encryption code and that can be used only to encode messages
Examples of public-key in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The company recently open-sourced its HUMAN Verified AI Agent protocol, a method for AI agents to identify and authenticate themselves using public-key cryptography and HTTP Message Signatures.
—
Tony Bradley, Forbes.com, 30 July 2025
Introduced more than a decade ago by a consortium of companies, Secure Boot uses public-key cryptography to block the loading of any code during the boot-up process that isn't signed with a pre-approved digital signature.
—Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 10 June 2025
These mathematical solutions are designed to be used to replace today’s public-key encryption.
—John Prisco, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025
The app’s wallet uses an open-source protocol to generate a ZKP showing that the holder’s private key is linked to a public-key hash on the blockchain, without revealing which one.
—Edd Gent, IEEE Spectrum, 22 Dec. 2022
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Tony Bradley, Forbes.com, 30 July 2025
Introduced more than a decade ago by a consortium of companies, Secure Boot uses public-key cryptography to block the loading of any code during the boot-up process that isn't signed with a pre-approved digital signature.
—Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 10 June 2025
These mathematical solutions are designed to be used to replace today’s public-key encryption.
—John Prisco, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025
The app’s wallet uses an open-source protocol to generate a ZKP showing that the holder’s private key is linked to a public-key hash on the blockchain, without revealing which one.
—Edd Gent, IEEE Spectrum, 22 Dec. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Public-key.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/public-key. Accessed 5 Oct. 2025.
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