'decode' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'decodere,' where 'de-' meant 'reverse' and 'codere' meant 'to arrange or write.'

'decodere' transformed into the French word 'décoder,' and eventually became the modern English word 'decode' through Middle English.

Initially, it meant 'to reverse the arrangement of a code,' but over time it evolved into its current meaning of 'to convert coded data into readable form.'