Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
codetalker

codetalker

1 9.9
A Native American soldier, often Navajo, who used their language to send secret military messages during World War II
  • noun
  • /ˈkoʊdˌtɔːkər/
  • US
: hablante de código
  • Many young men aspired to become codetalkers because of their important contributions to the war effort.

Examples

  • The Navajo codetalker played a crucial role in transmitting secret messages during World War II.

  • Can you allow your codetalker to fall into enemy hands.

    Windtalkers (2002)

  • That codetalker is out front for a reason.

    Windtalkers (2002)

  • The man was a Navajo, not a codetalker.

    Windtalkers (2002)

  • You boys want to be codetalkers.

    Windtalkers (2002)

  • Listen, Enders, I'm a codetalker.

    Windtalkers (2002)

  • During the war, a codetalker would speak in his native language to ensure that enemies could not understand the messages.

Synonyms

windtalker
vscodetalker
1 9.9

A Navajo person who made and sent secret military codes during World War II

emphasizes members who served as military personnel using a secure wartime code

Surface Forms

codetalker singular
codetalkers plural

Morphology

codetalker = code + talker (transparent) = code + talk + er

Meaning is directly compositional: a compound of 'code' + 'talker' = a person who talks in code.

Etymology

Codetalker combines code ('a secret system') and talker ('someone who speaks'). During World War II Native American soldiers, especially Navajo, used their language to make a secret, unbreakable code, so a codetalker was a person who kept military messages safe.