To decode a message is to

To decode a message is to interpret it, turning received symbols back into meaning.

The receiver performs decoding to understand what the sender encoded.

Evaluating a message is judging its worth, a later step than simply interpreting it.

Translating ideas into code describes encoding, the sender's opposite act.

Rejecting a message is refusing it altogether, not working out its meaning.

Accurate decoding depends on shared codes between sender and receiver.