Decipher

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Decipher \De*ci"pher\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Deciphered}; p. pr.
     & vb. n. {Deciphering}.] [Pref. de- + cipher. Formed in
     imitation of F. d['e]chiffrer. See {Cipher}.]
     1. To translate from secret characters or ciphers into
        intelligible terms; as, to decipher a letter written in
        secret characters.


        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. To find out, so as to be able to make known the meaning
        of; to make out or read, as words badly written or partly
        obliterated; to detect; to reveal; to unfold.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. To stamp; to detect; to discover. [R.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              You are both deciphered, . . .
              For villains.                         --Shak.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  decipher
       v 1: convert code into ordinary language [syn: {decode}, {decrypt}]
            [ant: {encode}]
       2: read with difficulty; "Can you decipher this letter?"; "The
          archeologist traced the hieroglyphs" [syn: {trace}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  84 Moby Thesaurus words for "decipher":
     account for, allegorize, analyze, answer, bottom, break,
     break down, cipher, clarify, clear up, crack, cryptanalyze, debug,
     decode, decrypt, demonstrate, demythologize, disentangle, divine,
     do, dope, dope out, elucidate, enlighten, euhemerize, exemplify,
     explain, explain away, explicate, exposit, expound, fathom,
     figure out, find out, find the answer, find the solution, get,
     get right, give reason for, give the meaning, guess, guess right,
     have it, hit it, illuminate, illustrate, interpret, make clear,
     make out, make plain, open the lock, paraphrase, plumb, popularize,
     psych, psych out, puzzle out, rationalize, ravel, ravel out, read,
     resolve, riddle, shed light upon, show, show how, show the way,
     simplify, solve, sort out, spell out, throw light upon, translate,
     undo, unfold, unlock, unravel, unriddle, unscramble, untangle,
     untwist, unweave, work, work out