multibyte

M3U1L1T1I1B3Y4T1E1

adjective

Contained in more than one byte.

“The computer stored the number in a multibyte location: it took 32 bits or four entire bytes to store so large a value.”

OriginEnglish byte ← Middle English multi- ← Latin multī →
UncommonScrabble 16
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Meanings

adjective

also multi-byte

  1. computingContained in more than one byte.

    The computer stored the number in a multibyte location: it took 32 bits or four entire bytes to store so large a value.

Origin

  1. Proto-Italic*moltos
  2. Latinmultus
  3. Latinmultī
  4. Middle Englishmulti-
  5. Englishmulti-
  6. Englishbyte
  7. Englishmultibyte

From multi- + byte.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

multibyte. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/multibyte

MLA

“multibyte.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/multibyte. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “multibyte,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/multibyte.

Source: multibyte on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.