encode

verb

en·​code in-ˈkōd 

en-

encoded; encoding; encodes

transitive verb

1

a

: to convert (something, such as a body of information) from one system of communication into another

especially : to convert (a message) into code

b

: to convey symbolically

the capacity of poetry to encode ideology

—J. D. Niles

2

: to specify the genetic code for

encoder noun

Examples of encode in a Sentence

Credit cards are encoded with cardholder information.

a technology that encodes images

Recent Examples on the Web

Scientists have traditionally believed that all the instructions a cell needs to become a particular type are encoded in its DNA. —Viviane Callier, Quanta Magazine, 21 Mar. 2025

Read More: 5 Thought-Provoking Facts About Brain Function Implications for AI The research also showed that the rise and fall of speech is encoded much earlier in auditory processing than previously thought. —Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 3 Mar. 2025

While your genome comprises all of the genes that encode your biology, your exposome is a concept that comprises all your environmental exposures. —Gary W. Miller, The Conversation, 3 Feb. 2025

This new round of data is for a vaccine that delivers strands of mRNA — the same material used in the COVID vaccines — encoding the recipes for a long list of proteins specific to a patient’s tumor. —Lisa Jarvis, Twin Cities, 9 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1919, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for encode

• abode
• anode
• barcode
• bestowed
• boatload
• borrowed
• carload
• caseload
• cathode
• commode
• corrode
• crossroad

Kids Definition

encode

verb

en·​code in-ˈkōd 

en-

: to change (as a body of information) from one system of communication into another

especially : to change (a message) into code

encoder noun

Medical Definition

encode

transitive verb

en·​code in-ˈkōd, en- 

encoded; encoding

: to specify the genetic code for

each nucleotide triplet or codon on the mRNA chain encodes a specific amino acid

—J. E. Darnell, Jr.