What does the check engine light mean in a 1996 Honda Accord?

light means ther is a sensor gone bad what you got to do is there is an on board diegnostic on the passenger side lower floor panel there is a blue clip turn every thing off and install a jumper wire then turn key till the check engine light comes on again and count the times it blinks 1 long blink and the how ever manny short blinks mean two digit code like 16 or like thatthen ask a parts store for the code meanings Pull the codes from the computer, match the code to the troubleshooting procedure, follow the procedure to find the source. Repair the source, light will go out if that was the only problem. There are "monitors" or self test the computer runs the car through, if a problem occurs, it may not run all of the self tests until that problem is taken care. Therefore, another problem may exist. It is emission related.