decipher
/dɪˈsaɪfə(ɹ)/verb, noun
decipher is spelled D-E-C-I-P-H-E-R: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.4 times per million words in written English, the 24,170th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, decipher means “To convert a code or cipher to plain text” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in decipher?
| Letters | 8: D-E-C-I-P-H-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.4 times per million words; the 24,170th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is decipher?
Decipher appears 1.4 times per million words in written English, the 24,170th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce decipher?
- UK /dɪˈsaɪfə(ɹ)/
Decipher has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-decipher.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of decipher
- deciphers present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- deciphering participle, present
- deciphered participle, past
- decypher
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does decipher mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To convert a code or cipher to plain text.
- 2
To read text that is almost illegible or obscure.
- 3
To make sense of a complex situation.
- 4
To find a solution to a problem.
noun
- 1
A decipherment; a decoding.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Decipher in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | déchiffrer |
| German | dechiffrieren, entschlüsseln , entziffern |
| Portuguese | decifrar , resolver |
| Spanish | descifrar, decodificar , interpretar , resolver |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does decipher come from?
As decypher, but not retaining the y from the Old French etyma of cipher (cyfre, cyffre); the i spelling tends to be preferred etymologically, being consistent with its cognates, the French déchiffrer and the Italian decifrare, and with their common ancestor, the Medieval Latin cifra, cifera, ciphra. By surface analysis, de- + cipher.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).