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Glite Dictionary
XOR circuit

XOR circuit

6.8
An electronic circuit that gives an on output only when an odd number of its inputs are on
  • noun
  • /ɛks ɔr ˈsɜrkɪt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : circuito XOR
  • The XOR circuit is essential for performing binary addition in many digital systems.

Examples

  • An engineer explained that the XOR circuit could be used to implement a parity check.

  • In this assignment, students will design an XOR circuit from basic logic gates.

  • When troubleshooting the malfunctioning controller, the engineer suspected a faulty XOR circuit.

  • The XOR circuit is essential in digital electronics.

  • You can create an XOR circuit using basic logic gates.

  • The XOR circuit outputs true when exactly one of its inputs is true.

  • To simplify the design, they used a XOR circuit to ensure proper output only under specific conditions.

Synonyms

XOR gate
vsXOR circuit
  • Specialized
6.2

An electronic circuit that gives a signal when an odd number of inputs are on

names the same function as a physical hardware implementation
X-OR circuit
vsXOR circuit
  • Specialized
7.8

A circuit that sends a signal when two inputs are different

applies to odd numbers of true inputs rather than only pairwise differences

Surface Forms

XOR circuit singular
XOR circuits plural

Morphology

XOR + circuit

The phrase is fully compositional: 'XOR' denotes the exclusive-OR logical operation and 'circuit' denotes an electrical/digital arrangement of components, so together they mean a circuit that implements XOR. Therefore a learner who knows both constituents (including the technical label XOR) can directly derive the meaning; note that XOR is a specialized abbreviation and may be unfamiliar to many learners, but that does not make the compound opaque.

Etymology

XOR circuit comes from exclusive or, which means 'either one or the other but not both'. Imagine two light switches wired so a lamp turns on only when one switch is on, not when both are on; that clear picture shows why the circuit gives an 'on' output only when an odd number of its input switches are on.