check character

7.1

An extra digit or letter added to the end of a code to find reading errors

noun
/ˈtʃɛk ˈkɛrɪktər/

Specialized

: carácter de verificación

The software verifies the integrity of each message by analyzing the check character at the end of the string.

Examples

A transmission error was detected when the check character did not match the expected value.
Barcodes often include a check character to ensure digits have been scanned correctly.
The check character ensures data integrity.
We need to calculate the check character for this transmission.
A transmission error was detected when the check character did not match the expected value.
Barcodes often include a check character to ensure digits have been scanned correctly.
The software verifies the integrity of each message by analyzing the check character at the end of the string.

How Reliable

hash

Specialized

35 4.9

cyclic redundancy check

Specialized

1 6.8

to checksum

Specialized

6.3

check character

Specialized

7.1

parity bit

Specialized

6.2

Surface Forms

check character singular

check characters plural

Morphology

check + character

The MWE denotes a symbol used to verify data integrity, a meaning directly derivable from 'check' (to verify) + 'character' (a symbol). Although technical, the phrase literally describes a character used for checking, so learners who know both constituents can reasonably infer the meaning.

Etymology

The noun check character comes from the image of adding one last character (a letter or number) to a message as a quick check. Imagine putting a final mark on a list to see if everything matches — if the mark is wrong, you know there is an error, so the term means a final character used 'to verify' that the data is correct.