What does encipherment mean?
Encipherment is the process of converting ordinary, readable text (plaintext) into a disguised form (ciphertext) by applying a cipher, so that the message is unintelligible to anyone who does not know the method or key required to reverse it. The term is closely associated with classical cryptography — systems such as substitution and transposition ciphers worked out by hand — and it remains standard vocabulary in the history and theory of cryptography, alongside its counterpart 'decipherment,' the recovery of the original message. In everyday modern usage, 'encryption' has largely displaced 'encipherment,' which now carries a somewhat formal, technical register and often evokes earlier eras of codes, codebooks, and wartime signals intelligence. The word functions as a noun for both the act of enciphering and, occasionally, the resulting enciphered text. It derives from 'encipher,' formed from the prefix 'en-' plus 'cipher,' which itself traces back through Arabic ṣifr, meaning 'zero' or 'empty.'
nounThe act, process, or result of converting plaintext into cipher — that is, encoding a message so that it is unreadable without the appropriate key or method of decryption.
- The process of converting plaintext into ciphertext using a cipher.
- The state or result of a message being so converted (i.e., the ciphertext itself).
"The encipherment of diplomatic telegrams kept their contents secret even if intercepted."
"The encipherment of naval communications relied on codebooks distributed to every ship in the fleet."
"Careless encipherment allowed enemy cryptanalysts to recover the message within hours."
Rarely pluralized, since the word usually denotes an uncountable process; the plural appears only when referring to distinct instances or types of enciphered text or methods.
"The archive contains hundreds of encipherments from the Second World War."
Before computers, 'encipherment' meant literally hand-substituting letters one by one — and breaking those ciphers helped win wars.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of encipherment
Encipherment derives from the verb 'encipher,' formed in English from the prefix 'en-' plus 'cipher.' The noun 'cipher' entered English in the sixteenth century from Old French cifre, ultimately from Arabic ṣifr ('zero, empty'), which also gave English 'zero'; the sense extended from numerical symbols to secret systems of writing. The related verb 'decipher' shares the same root, and the broader family includes cryptography and encryption.
Related word forms
How encipherment is actually used
Formal and technical; found chiefly in cryptographic, military, and historical literature. In modern computing contexts, 'encryption' is strongly preferred, with 'encipherment' often reserved for pre-computer or classical ciphers.
Easily confused with encipherment
Both mean rendering a message unreadable, but 'encryption' is the modern standard term for key-based cryptographic transformation, while 'encipherment' is an older, more technical term traditionally applied to classical letter-by-letter ciphers.