crypto

Etymology

noun

1. A secret supporter or follower.
   Martin of course is far too dishonest to be outright a crypto or fellow-traveller, but his main influence is pro-Russian and is certainly intended to be so, and I feel reasonably sure he would quislingise in the case of a Russian occupation, if he had not managed to get away on the last plane. 2016, George Orwell, Peter Davison, George Orwell: A Life in Letters
2. (uncountable, informal) Clipping of cryptography.
   The CIA is also very into crypto (which makes sense, as they are the home of spy versus spy), […] 2004, Chey Cobb, Cryptography For Dummies, page 20
3. (informal, cryptocurrencies) Clipping of cryptocurrency.
   Nigeria—the world's second-largest Bitcoin market after the United States—has banned the trading of cryptocurrencies. It's triggered anger among Nigerians who see cryptos as a safe haven in a battered economy. 2021-02-12, Fred Muvunyi, “Nigeria's cryptocurrency crackdown causes confusion”, in Deutsche Welle News, Deutsche Welle, archived from the original on 2021-02-13, World
   Some Turks have turned to crypto as a way to protect their savings from skyrocketing inflation and the weakening of its currency, the lira. 2021-04-26, Ryan Browne, “A second bitcoin exchange collapses in Turkey amid crackdown on cryptocurrencies”, in CNBC, retrieved 2021-04-26
   But to state and federal regulators and some members of Congress, the entry of crypto into banking is cause for alarm. 2021-09-05, Eric Lipton, Ephrat Livni, “Crypto’s Rapid Move Into Banking Elicits Alarm in Washington”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
4. (informal, medicine) Clipping of cryptococcus.
5. (informal, medicine) Clipping of cryptosporidium.
6. (informal, pathology) Clipping of cryptosporidiosis.

adj

1. Secret or covert.