code

[[t]koʊd[/t]]

n. v. cod•ed, cod•ing

1) tgp a system for communication by telegraph, heliograph, etc., in which the letters of a message are represented by long and short sounds, light flashes, etc.:

Morse code[/ex]

2) crp a system used for brevity or secrecy of communication, in which arbitrarily chosen words, letters, or symbols are assigned definite meanings

3) letters, numbers, or other symbols used in a code system to represent or identify something:

The code on the label shows the date of manufacture[/ex]

4) gov a systematically arranged collection of existing laws:

a local health code[/ex]

5) cmp the symbolic arrangement of statements or instructions in a computer program or the set of instructions in such a program

6) gov any system of rules and regulations:

a code of behavior[/ex]

7) med a directive or alert to a hospital team assigned to emergency resuscitation of patients

8) gen

genetic code

9) ling. Ling.

ling. the system of rules shared by the participants in an act of communication; a language, dialect, or language variety

10) crp to translate (a message) into a code; encode

11) gov to put or arrange (rules, regulations, etc.) in a code

12) gen to specify the amino acid sequence of a protein by the sequence of nucleotides comprising the gene for that protein:

a gene that codes for the production of insulin[/ex]

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Etymology: 1275–1325; ME < AF, OF < L cōdex codex cod′er, n.