Binary Meaning
/ˈbaɪ.nə.ɹɪ/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjBeing in one of two mutually exclusive states.
adjConcerning logic whose subject matter concerns such states.
Sentence Examples
The “Book of Changes” presents the oldest binary encoding.
The number 2015 is represented as 11111011111 in binary.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The computer uses the ____ number system, which only includes 0 and 1.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Computers use a ____ system of zeros and ones to process all data.
Word Origin & History
From Late Latin bīnārius (“consisting of two”), from Latin bīnī (“two-by-two, pair”). By surface analysis, bin- + -ary.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Of all the transitions brought about on the Earth’s surface by temperature change, the melting of ice into water is the starkest. It is binary. And for the land beneath, the air above and the life around, it changes everything."
— 2013 May 11, “The climate of Tibet: Pole-land”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8835, page 80:
"It's not binary. You can be decent and gifted at the same time."
— 2015, Aaron Sorkin, Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs, spoken by Steve Wozniak (Seth Rogen):
"Yo… you've been staring at a computer screen way too long, homie. Life's not that binary."
— 2015 July 1, Sam Esmail, “eps1.1_ones-and-zer0es.mpeg”, in Mr. Robot, season 1, episode 2, spoken by Elliot Alderson:
"To further unpack trans and gender-diverse embodiment, requires one to unpack the depth of the discourse as it relates to both binary and non-binary people (Hofman, 2012). It necessitates deeper engagement as to the politics of passing, not passing, societal assimilation and non-assimilation."
— 2020, Liberty Matthyse, “Achieving gender equality by 2030: Transgender equality in relation to Sustainable Development Goal 5”, in Agenda, volume 34, number 1 (Gendered and Feminist Inequalities), →DOI, →ISSN, page 3:
"The correlation between warmth and cold is an internal one where the existence of one depends on and is defined by the other. Hence, the yin-yang binary as a correlative binary of light-shade or warmth-cold [...]"
— 2012, Li-Hsiang Lisa Rosenlee, Confucianism and Women: A Philosophical Interpretation, →ISBN, page 51:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The computer uses the ____ number system, which only includes 0 and 1.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Computers use a ____ system of zeros and ones to process all data.