decipher
verb
de·ci·pher
dē-ˈsī-fər 
deciphered; deciphering; deciphers
1
: decode sense 1a
decipher a secret message
2
obsolete
: depict
with her majesty's name deciphered in gold letters—
Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift3
a
: to make out the meaning of despite indistinctness or obscurity
trying to decipher her handwriting
b
: to interpret the meaning of
decipher the poem
Examples of decipher in a Sentence
I couldn't decipher his sloppy handwriting.
we deciphered the hidden message to find out when we were supposed to meet
Recent Examples on the Web
As these networks get bigger, their abilities explode, but deciphering their inner workings has always been near impossible.
—Anil Ananthaswamy, Quanta Magazine, 12 Apr. 2024
These businesses often lack in-house legal departments dedicated to filing audits, recording statistics and deciphering which information is wanted by which authorities — the European, federal, state and local governments.
—Melissa Eddy, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024
Here's our guide to deciphering the pantheon of fruit desserts.
—Patricia S York, Southern Living, 9 Apr. 2024
Criminal profiling, the technique of deciphering the psychological makeup of offenders, is a crucial part of solving true crime mysteries.
—Callie Cassick, Fox News, 28 Mar. 2024
Analytics plays a pivotal role in deciphering the patterns, market trends and customer behaviors that enable you to make informed decisions.
—Robin Elledge, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Given the difficulty of deciphering complicated rules and the fear of making a mistake or missing out on a deduction, many people turn to professionals or pay to use software.
—Erika Page, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 Mar. 2024
Kelly was upbeat, having deciphered the plot numbers.
—Robert Sullivan, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
The differing accounts have sent the internet into a speculation frenzy — with many sharing their unconfirmed theories online in an attempt to decipher what happened.
—Daysia Tolentino, NBC News, 20 Mar. 2024
Anil Ananthaswamy, Quanta Magazine, 12 Apr. 2024
These businesses often lack in-house legal departments dedicated to filing audits, recording statistics and deciphering which information is wanted by which authorities — the European, federal, state and local governments.
—Melissa Eddy, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024
Here's our guide to deciphering the pantheon of fruit desserts.
—Patricia S York, Southern Living, 9 Apr. 2024
Criminal profiling, the technique of deciphering the psychological makeup of offenders, is a crucial part of solving true crime mysteries.
—Callie Cassick, Fox News, 28 Mar. 2024
Analytics plays a pivotal role in deciphering the patterns, market trends and customer behaviors that enable you to make informed decisions.
—Robin Elledge, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Given the difficulty of deciphering complicated rules and the fear of making a mistake or missing out on a deduction, many people turn to professionals or pay to use software.
—Erika Page, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 Mar. 2024
Kelly was upbeat, having deciphered the plot numbers.
—Robert Sullivan, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
The differing accounts have sent the internet into a speculation frenzy — with many sharing their unconfirmed theories online in an attempt to decipher what happened.
—Daysia Tolentino, NBC News, 20 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'decipher.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near decipher
Cite this Entry
“Decipher.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/decipher. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
decipher
verb
de·ci·pher
di-ˈsī-fər
1
: to convert into understandable form
especially
: decode
2
: to make out the meaning of despite lack of clearness
decipher sloppy handwriting
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