hacker

American  

[hak-er] / ˈhæk ər /

noun

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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Etymology

Origin of hacker

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

Example Sentences

Security researchers have been particularly concerned about residential proxy networks of late because hackers recently have been using them as a way to hack their way into millions of homes.

From The Wall Street Journal

But somehow hackers got into their cloud storage account, where they kept information about their crypto wallets and how to access them.

From BBC

But it was already too late to stop the hacker.

From BBC

Chen solicits assistance from a hacker who owes him a favor, and from his own personal assistant, Jin, whose interest in her unmarried boss’s well-being is touchingly personal.

From The Wall Street Journal

Many cyber chiefs, facing flat budget growth, are also redirecting labor costs into automated security tools, both to fill workforce gaps and to keep pace with hackers tapping AI to supercharge attacks, they say.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• operator
• technician