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

Once Claude had its instructions, it was left to work on its own for hours; when its tasks were concluded, the human hackers then spent as little as a couple of minutes reviewing its work and triggering the next steps. —Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 25 Nov. 2025

Any robot in your home would have an array of cameras, microphones, and sensors, becoming an alluring target for hackers, while the robots themselves would need to be accessed remotely for troubleshooting, potentially giving attackers physical access to your house. —James Vincent, Harpers Magazine, 23 Nov. 2025

Russian hackers are attacking European networks. —Trudy Rubin, Twin Cities, 23 Nov. 2025

Russian hackers are attacking European networks. —Trudy Rubin, Mercury News, 22 Nov. 2025

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