cypher

English

Noun

cypher (plural cyphers)

1. Alternative spelling of cipher
   • 1814 July, [Jane Austen], chapter XVII, in Mansfield Park: , volume I, London: T Egerton, , →OCLC, page 337:

     Lady Bertram seems more of a cypher now than when he is at home; […]

   • 2023 July 26, Christian Wolmar, “Closing ticket offices to lead to 'catch-22' for passengers”, in RAIL, number 988, page 42:

     I have been critical of the RDG in the past for merely being a cypher for government announcements, but the failure of its members to make a stand on this issue and not be complicit in the Government's subterfuge is a shocking indictment of their failure to protect the industry.

Verb

cypher (third-person singular simple present cyphers, present participle cyphering, simple past and past participle cyphered)

1. Alternative spelling of cipher

Usage notes

• Less common than cipher, but still used; see The Ultra Secret by Winterbotham, the cypherpunk movement, Strider weapon, and consider the Royal Navy's series of Cyphers (Nr 1, Nr 2, Nr 3, ...) before and into WWII.

Anagrams

• Chypre, chypre