variants
also chiefly British cypher
plural ciphers
1
technical
: a way of changing a message to keep it secret : code
a cipher that can't be decoded
The message was written in cipher. [=the message was coded]
2
formal + disapproving
: a person who has no power or is not important
She was nothing more than a cipher.
Cite this Entry
“Cipher.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/cipher. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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