What does "code" mean?
A short textual designation, often with little relation to the item it represents.
Code
/kəʊd/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A short textual designation, often with little relation to the item it represents.
- Grammar: code is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: academic integrity, adjective of behavior, aesopian language, ancient legal code.
- Useful contrasts: historic code, uncoded diagnosis code, chaos.
- Usage evidence: Frank left a message by means of a secret code.
How to use "code"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "code" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "code" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "code" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "code" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "code" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "academic integrity" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "code", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A short textual designation, often with little relation to the item it represents. countable, uncountable
"This flavour of soup has been assigned the code WRT-9."
- 2 Alternative form of cod. alt-of, alternative
- 3 a coding system used for transmitting messages requiring brevity or secrecy wordnet
- 4 A body of law, sanctioned by legislation, in which the rules of law to be specifically applied by the courts are set forth in systematic form; a compilation of laws by public authority; a digest. countable, uncountable
"the mild and impartial spirit which pervades the Code compiled under Canute"
- 5 (computer science) the symbolic arrangement of data or instructions in a computer program or the set of such instructions wordnet
Show 12 more definitions
- 6 Any system of principles, rules or regulations relating to one subject. countable, uncountable
"The medical code is a system of rules for the regulation of the professional conduct of physicians."
- 7 a set of rules or principles or laws (especially written ones) wordnet
- 8 A set of rules for converting information into another form or representation. countable, uncountable
- 9 a series of letters, numbers or symbols assigned to something for the purpose of classification or identification wordnet
- 10 A set of rules for converting information into another form or representation.; By synecdoche: a codeword, code point, an encoded representation of a character, symbol, or other entity. countable, uncountable
"The ASCII code of "A" is 65."
- 11 A message represented by rules intended to conceal its meaning. countable, uncountable
"[Isaac Newton] was obsessed with alchemy. He spent hours copying alchemical recipes and trying to replicate them in his laboratory. He believed that the Bible contained numerological codes."
- 12 A cryptographic system using a codebook that converts words or phrases into codewords. countable, uncountable
- 13 Instructions for a computer, written in a programming language; the input of a translator, an interpreter or a browser, namely: source code, machine code, bytecode. uncountable
"Object-oriented C++ code is easier to understand for a human than C code."
- 14 A program. countable, uncountable
- 15 A particular lect or language variety. countable, uncountable
- 16 An emergency requiring situation-trained members of the staff. countable, uncountable
- 17 A set of unwritten rules that bind a social group. countable, informal, uncountable
"girl code"
Verb
- 1 To write software programs.
"I learned to code on an early home computer in the 1980s."
- 2 convert ordinary language into code wordnet
- 3 To add codes to (a data set). transitive
"The resulting citation collection was databased and coded for meaning, etymon, and date range (earliest and latest occurrence found)."
- 4 attach a code to wordnet
- 5 To categorise by assigning identifiers from a schedule, for example CPT coding for medical insurance purposes.
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 To encode.
"We should code the messages we send out on Usenet."
- 7 To encode a protein. intransitive
- 8 To call a hospital emergency code. informal
"coding in the CT scanner"
- 9 Of a patient, to suffer a sudden medical emergency (a code blue) such as cardiac arrest. informal
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonyms academic integrityadjective of behavioraesopian languageancient legal codeannotate timelineannotated
Antonyms
Example
"Frank left a message by means of a secret code."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "code"?
Common synonyms include: academic integrity, adjective of behavior, aesopian language, ancient legal code, annotate timeline, annotated.
How do you use "code" in a sentence?
Frank left a message by means of a secret code.
How do you pronounce "code"?
Pronounced /kəʊd/.
Etymology
From Middle English code (“system of law”), from Old French code (“system of law”), from Latin cōdex, later form of caudex (“the stock or stem of a tree, a board or tablet of wood smeared over with wax, on which the ancients originally wrote; hence, a book, a writing.”). Doublet of codex. Verb etymology 1 sense 7 is an ellipsis of code blue (“medical emergency”).