What does ciphering mean?
Ciphering refers to the act of performing calculations, particularly by hand, and historically also to the process of putting a message into cipher or code. The word derives from "cipher," which entered English via Old French from the Arabic ṣifr, meaning "empty" or "zero" — the same root that gave English the word "zero." In everyday use through the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, ciphering was a staple of school arithmetic: students were drilled in long columns of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, and skilled mental ciphering was a point of pride. With the arrival of mechanical and then electronic calculators, the word took on an old-fashioned flavor and now appears mostly in historical writing, regional speech, and discussions of cryptography, where ciphering means transforming plaintext into coded form. Its cognates include "decipher" and "zero," all tracing back to that single Arabic root for emptiness — a fitting origin for a symbol that once stood for nothing and now underpins all mathematics.
The act or practice of performing arithmetic calculations, especially by hand.
"Her ciphering was so accurate that the bank hired her on the spot."
Often carries a quaint or historical connotation in modern usage.
The act of converting a message into cipher; encipherment.
"The ciphering of diplomatic telegrams required absolute precision."
Before electronic calculators, "ciphering" was such a routine school skill that children drilled it alongside reading and writing — and the word ultimately traces back to the Arabic ṣifr, meaning "empty," the same root that gave us "zero."
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of ciphering
Ciphering comes from "cipher," which entered Middle English in the fourteenth century via Old French from the Medieval Latin cifra, itself borrowed from the Arabic ṣifr, meaning "empty" or "zero." The same Arabic root independently yielded "zero" through Italian, making "cipher" and "zero" doublets in English. The gerund form "ciphering" came to denote both arithmetical calculation and the enciphering of messages, reflecting the word's dual history with numerals and secret writing.
Related word forms
How ciphering is actually used
Somewhat old-fashioned or historical in tone today, evoking an era of hand computation before calculators; in modern usage it most often appears in historical contexts or when discussing cryptography.
Easily confused with ciphering
"Cypher" is simply a chiefly British variant spelling of "cipher" and carries the same meanings, not a different word.