Meaning & use
cryptologist
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Meaning
nouncountabletechnical
An expert who studies secret writing, both how to create unreadable messages and how to break them.
Grammar: Countable and often found with employers: a cryptologist at a security agency.
Patterns
- a cryptologist at something
- a cryptologist for something
During the war, a cryptologist helped to break enemy messages.
The cryptologist spent weeks working on the ancient cipher.
A government cryptologist briefed the committee on new encryption methods.
Word forms
| plural | cryptologists |
|---|
Common combinations
- government cryptologist
- A government cryptologist checked the codes used by diplomats.
- military cryptologist
- A military cryptologist can work on secure radio systems.
- skilled cryptologist
- Only a skilled cryptologist could solve the puzzle.
- cryptologist at
- She works as a cryptologist at a national laboratory.
- become a cryptologist
- To become a cryptologist, you need advanced mathematics.
Synonyms and how they differ
- cryptographer
- A cryptographer designs codes and ciphers, while cryptologist is the wider term that also covers breaking them.
- cryptanalyst
- A cryptanalyst focuses on breaking codes, whereas a cryptologist may do both making and breaking.
- codebreaker
- Codebreaker is an informal everyday word, while cryptologist is the formal professional title.
Word family
- cryptology noun
- The study of codes and ciphers
- cryptologic adjective
- Relating to cryptology
- cryptography noun
- The art of writing and solving codes
Commonly confused: cryptologist or cryptozoologist? cryptologist or cryptographer?
cryptologist vs cryptozoologist
A cryptozoologist searches for animals whose existence is not proven, such as the Loch Ness monster.
cryptologist vs cryptographer
A cryptographer creates secure codes, whereas a cryptologist studies both making and breaking them.
Practice
Which professional would most likely work on breaking a secret enemy code?
Choose one answer.
A cryptologist studies and breaks codes. A cartographer makes maps and a criminologist studies crime, so neither works on ciphers.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cryptologist”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.