Emily Dickinson Lexicon

DE-CI'PHER, v.t. [Fr. dechiffrer; de and chiffre, a cipher; It. deciferare; Sp. descifrar; Port. decifrar. See Cipher.]

1. To find the alphabet of a cipher; to explain what is written in ciphers, by finding what letter each character or mark represents; as, to decipher a letter written in ciphers.
2. To unfold; to unravel what is intricate; to explain what is obscure or difficult to be understood; as, to decipher an ambiguous speech, or an ancient manuscript or inscription. 3. To write out; to mark down in characters. Locke. [This use is now uncommon, and perhaps improper.]
3. To stamp; to mark; to characterize. [Unusual.] – Shak.