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

Levi later gained access to a cache of Qatari documents from roughly the same period, which Syrian hackers had taken from the offices of the Sheikh, among others. — Ruth Margalit, New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2026

Their ability to swiftly break into one of the world’s two leading AI labs again raises concerns about OpenAI’s security amid rising worries about powerful models being used by hackers and foreign adversaries. — Cristina Criddle, ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2026

There is no evidence that any other hackers exploited the same vulnerabilities that Hacktron did. — Kevin Collier, NBC news, 18 Sep. 2026

The hacker essentially launched a massive internet scan that hunted for a way into the company’s network. — J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 16 Sep. 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