Encodings

/ɪnˈkoʊdɪŋz/ noun

Definition

Plural of encoding; the systems, formats, or methods used to represent information in a special code.

Etymology

From 'encode' + '-ing' (gerund suffix) + '-s' (plural). This became a standard technical term in computing and linguistics by the late 20th century.

Kelly Says

Different encodings are why your grandpa's old emails sometimes look like garbage on your phone—UTF-8, ASCII, and others all speak different 'languages' to computers!

Related Words

Explore More Words

Get the Word Orb API

Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.