alphanumericadj.n.
/ˌalfənjuːˈmɛrɪk/, /ˌalfənjᵿˈmɛrɪk/, U.S. /ˈˌælfən(j)uˈmɛrɪk/ Mathematics and Computing.
A. adj.
Consisting of or employing both letters and numerals; spec. designating coding of this kind in computing.
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society > computing and information technology > data > [adjective] > characters
alphanumerical1912
digital1940
alphameric1947
alphanumeric1961
1912 Signs, Symbols & Colors (U.S. Forest Service) (heading) Alpha-numeric symbols for tree species.
1938 U.S. Patent 2,124,178 12/1 Accordingly, the special alpha-numeric keyboard of Fig. 21 is preferably used.
1961 Times 3 Oct. (Computer Suppl.) p. viii (advt.) It has a built-in parity check on all alpha-numeric input information.
1982 Electronics 29 Dec. 62/1 Lamp drives for signs, annunciators, and graphical and alphanumeric displays.
2000 Times 6 Oct. i. 25/5 Even today, when using America's alpha-numeric telephone system, dialing the New York number PE6-5000 will connect you to the same place, the Hotel Pennsylvania in mid-town New York.
B. n.
In plural. Alphanumeric characters.
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society > communication > writing > written character > [noun] > employing both letters and numerals
alphanumerics1958
society > computing and information technology > data > [noun] > character > set of
alphabet1953
character set1954
alphanumerics1958
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical notation or symbol > [noun] > figure > both letters and numerals
alphanumerics1958
1958 Jrnl. Acad. Managem. 1 No. 2. 26 In the field of electronic data processing the word ‘data’ typically refers to a configuration of letters..numbers..and certain typewriter symbols... Because of this mixture, they are called ‘alphanumerics’ or ‘characters’.
1970 Publishers' Weekly 8 June 152 There is a strong effort under way to bring pictures within the compass of the computer, thereby making possible the combination of text—or, to say it in computer language, alphanumerics—with pictures.
1978 Nature 19 Oct. p. xvi/2 Alphanumerics are presented in upper and lower case,..bold face, and video reverse.
1990 L. Wall & R. L. Schwartz Programming Perl iii. 70 Note that you can put curly braces around the identifier to delimit it from following alphanumerics.
2005 I. H. Bernstein in R. W. Proctor & K. L. Vu Handbk. Human Factors in Web Design ii. 23 This code can handle English alphanumerics but not accented characters.
Derivatives
ˌalphanuˈmerically adv.
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1962 U.S. Patent 3,049,295 9 RA Read Alphanumerically.
1973 Nature 12 Jan. 146/3 The compounds are..listed alphanumerically in a permuted form under each significant symbol.
1986 Pract. Computing Oct. 73/1 Lists are automatically sorted alphanumerically with numbers before letters on multiple fields from left to right.
2011 Geomorphology 129 80/2 In each image, the particle location and size was determined using in-house processing software which alpha-numerically labels each particle.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2012; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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adj.n.1912