cyber

¹ American  

[sahy-ber] / ˈsaɪ bər /

noun

1. (used alone as a substitute for many compound words that begin with the combining form cyber-, as cyberattack, cybersecurity, cyberterrorism, orcyberwarfare ): Ethical hackers are being recruited for careers in cyber.

   GPS may be vulnerable to jamming and cyber.

   Ethical hackers are being recruited for careers in cyber.

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adjective

1. of or relating to computers, typically to one of the technology domains named with the combining form cyber-, as cyberterrorism, cyberwarfare, or cyberattack: several cyber breaches; cyber plots.

   a cyber threat;

   several cyber breaches;

   cyber operations;

   cyber plots.

verb (used without object)

1. to engage in cybersex.

   People playing the MMO were cybering in voice chat, sometimes without even creating a separate channel to keep it private.

cyber- ² American  

Digital Technology.

1. a combining form meaning “computer,” “computer network,” or “virtual reality,” used in the formation of compound words (cybertalk; cyberart; cyberspace ) and by extension meaning “expressing visions of the future” (cyberfashion ).

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cyber- British  

combining form

1. indicating computers

   cyberphobia

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cyber– Scientific  

1. A prefix that means “computer” or “computer network,” as in cyberspace, the electronic medium in which online communication takes place.

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Usage

What does cyber- mean? Cyber- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “computer” or "computer network." In many instances, it is used to refer generally to the internet. It is often used in technical terms, especially in computer science.Cyber- comes from a shortening of the term cybernetics, meaning “the study of communication and control in humans and mechanical systems.” Cybernetics ultimately comes from Greek kybernḗtēs, meaning "helmsman" or "steersman.” Learn more about cybernetics (and how it is related to the word govern) at our entry for the term.

Etymology

Origin of cyber¹

First recorded in 1990–95; from cyber- ( def. )

Origin of cyber-²

Extracted from cybernetics

Example Sentences

Precision strike systems, cyber tools, missile defenses and offensive drones can impose costs without a ground invasion.

From The Wall Street Journal

We are ourselves seeing cyber threats, with ebbs and flows, but certainly at a much higher degree of intensity.

From The Wall Street Journal

If that accounts for the “cyber” aspect of our cyberpunk dystopia, where’s the punk?

From Salon

When Anthropic recently disclosed a cyber espionage campaign that used artificial intelligence to execute much of the attack autonomously, headlines framed it as a new, uncontrollable threat.

From The Wall Street Journal

According to police, the suspect is believed to have sabotaged the payment system via a cyber attack, getting the system to authorise his transaction after entering only one cent as the charged amount.

From BBC

Related Words

• computerized