password

noun

used for user authentication to prove identity or access approval
word used to gain access to video game levels; commonly used in the 1980s and 1990s, after which they were supplanted by saved games

Pronunciation: /ˈpæs.wɜɹd/ / /ˈpɑːs.wɜːd/ / /ˈpæs.wɜːd/

Etymology: From pass + word. The sentry-passing sense predates the cryptographic sense and was its inspiration.

A word relayed to a person to gain admittance to a place or to gain access to information.
“Only if a would-be visitor knew the password du jour could he pass; the guards allowed no exceptions.”
“Now, Max, by what combination of circumstances is a rogue to know my password, to be able to forge my signature, to possess himself of my key, and to resemble me personally? And, finally, how is he possibly to determine beforehand whether there is anything in my safe to repay so elaborate a plant?”
A string of characters used to log in to a computer or network, to access a level in a video game, and so on; archetypally a word but nowadays often an alphanumeric string or a phrase.
“A strong password has a mixture of lowercase and uppercase letters, numbers, and punctuation marks.”

Etymology: From pass + word. The sentry-passing sense predates the cryptographic sense and was its inspiration.