hacker

noun

hack·​er ˈha-kər 

1

: one that hacks

2

: a person who is inexperienced or unskilled at a particular activity

a tennis hacker

3

: an expert at programming and solving problems with a computer

4

: a person who illegally gains access to and sometimes tampers with information in a computer system

Synonyms of hacker

• cracker
• cyberpunk
• geek

Examples of hacker in a Sentence

My friends and I have been playing golf for years, but we're still just a bunch of hackers.

the company's security experts spent days trying to figure out how a hacker could have gotten past the firewall

Recent Examples on the Web

As new tools emerge for hackers, so too do new responses emerge in the world of online protection, creating this cycle that keeps spurring on further innovation and progression. —William Jones, USA Today, 3 June 2026

Many experts warned that these capabilities existed beforehand, but hackers could use Mythos to expose software vulnerabilities more quickly. —Samantha Subin, CNBC, 2 June 2026

According to a new 404 report, the hackers simply asked Meta’s support bot to change the email address associated with the target account. —Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 2 June 2026

Social media posts claiming that hackers can extract fingerprints from photo subjects flashing peace signs online and enhance them using artificial intelligence have garnered thousands of likes and sparked anxiety for some. —Lauren Fichten, CBS News, 1 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hacker

• acker
• backer
• blacker
• cracker
• lacquer
• packer
• slacker
• stacker
• thacker
• tracker
• attacker
• backpacker

Kids Definition

hacker

noun

hack·​er ˈhak-ər 

1

: one that hacks

2

: a person who is unskilled at a particular activity

3

: an expert at programming and solving problems with a computer

4

: a person who illegally gains access to a computer system