byte

Meaning

Noun

• A short sequence of bits (binary digits) that can be operated on as a unit by a computer; the smallest usable machine word.
• A unit of computing storage equal to eight bits, which can represent any of 256 distinct values.

Origin

• A mutation of the word bite so it would not be accidentally misspelled as bit. , during the early design phase for the IBM 7030 Stretch computer.