CISC

CISC

[sisk]

(computer science)

complex instruction set computer

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

CISC

Complex Instruction Set Computer

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CISC

(Complex Instruction Set Computer) Pronounced "sisk." The traditional architecture of a computer processor. CISC computers use elementary machine instructions (microcode) to execute very comprehensive instructions. CISC instructions may be variable in length and use several addressing modes, requiring complex circuitry to decode them. The Intel x86 family is an example of CISC processors. Contrast with RISC. See microcode.

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