hacker

American  

[hak-er] / ˈhæk ər /

noun

• hackers
  plural

1. a person or thing that hacks.

2. Slang. a person who engages in an activity without talent or skill.

   weekend hackers on the golf course.

3. Computers.

   1. a person who has a high level of skill in computer technology or programming; a computer expert or enthusiast.

      My brother is a real hacker—he fixed my laptop in no time.

   2. a person who circumvents security and breaks into a network, computer, file, etc., often, but not always, with malicious intent.

      A hacker got into my computer remotely and wiped my hard drive!

      The company has hired hackers to test system security.

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hacker British  

/ ˈhækə /

noun

1. a person that hacks

2. slang a computer fanatic, esp one who through a personal computer breaks into the computer system of a company, government, etc

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• hackers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of hacker

First recorded in 1200–50 hacker for def. 1; Middle English (as surname); see hack ¹, -er ¹; 1965–70 hacker for def. 2

Explanation

A hacker is a skilled computer programmer who uses her abilities to break into the computer systems of companies or organizations. While most people imagine a hacker as a bad guy who steals credit card information, destroys data, or is otherwise malicious and destructive, some hackers break into systems simply to test their security. There are so many hackers today that they've formed a true community and subculture. The earliest use of hacker is from 1983, from hack as "person hired to do routine work," although MIT students in the 1960's reportedly used the word hack to mean "creative prank."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hacker hackers

Cyber Choices, also known as Cyber Prevent, is like a hacker rehab course.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

Both OpenAI, the hacker, and the victim, Hugging Face, have portrayed the response to this incident as a collaboration.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

A hacker could exploit that window by using the temporary buying power to trade securities or purchase cryptocurrency before the transfer fails.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026

Hacking It: As AI disrupts traditional career paths, these college students are skipping corporate internships for San Francisco hacker houses and incubators this summer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

Halliday was alluding to a famous ’70s hacker named John Draper, better known by the alias Captain Crunch.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

The FT, citing researchers at Israeli AI company Dream, said hackers had used open-source AI agents to build an autonomous tool to carry out the attack.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

Overseas hackers used artificial intelligence agents to help carry out a wave of cyberattacks targeting Taiwanese government agencies in July, the island's digital affairs ministry said Thursday.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

Plus: U.K. drones sent signals to China, what Gunra ransomware hackers want.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

The agencies warned that Iran-affiliated hackers were targeting internet-connected industrial controllers “to cause disruptive effects within the United States.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026

Hideo has indeed hired a few hackers in the past—to help him work out bugs inside Warcross—but they were way more experienced, and probably with no criminal records.

From "Warcross" by Marie Lu

Related Words

• operator
• technician