Computer memory
Each on/off setting in the computer's memory is called a binary digit or bit. A group of eight bits is called a byte. A byte is made from two nibbles of four bits each. Computer scientists made up the words bit and byte. The word bit is short for binary digit. It takes bi from binary and adds the t from digit. A collection of bits was called a bite. The computer scientists changed the spelling to byte to avoid confusion. When the computer scientists needed a word for half a byte, they thought nibble, as in half a bite, would be a fun word to choose.