hack

Meanings

Verb

• To chop or cut down in a rough manner.
• To cough noisily.
• To withstand or put up with a difficult situation.
• To make a quick code change to patch a computer program, often one that, while being effective, is inelegant or makes the program harder to maintain.
• To accomplish a difficult programming task.
• To work with something on an intimately technical level.
• To apply a trick, shortcut, skill, or novelty method to something to increase productivity, efficiency or ease.
• To hack into; to gain unauthorized access to (a computer system, e.g., a website, or network) by manipulating code.
• To gain unauthorised access to a computer or online account belonging to (a person or organisation).
• To strike an opponent with one's hockey stick, typically on the leg but occasionally and more seriously on the back, arm, head, etc.
• To make a flailing attempt to hit the puck with a hockey stick.
• To swing at a pitched ball.
• To kick (a player) on the shins.
• To strike in a frantic movement.
• To strike lightly as part of tapotement massage.
• To lay (bricks) on a rack to dry.
• To keep (young hawks) in a state of partial freedom, before they are trained.
• To make common or cliched; to vulgarise.
• To ride a horse at a regular pace; to ride on a road (as opposed to riding cross-country etc.).
• To live the life of a drudge or hack.
• To use as a hack; to let out for hire.
• To use frequently and indiscriminately, so as to render trite and commonplace.
• To drive a hackney cab.
• To play hackeysack.

Noun

• A tool for chopping.
• A hacking blow.
• A gouge or notch made by such a blow.
• A dry cough.
• A hacking; a catch in speaking; a short, broken cough.
• A try, an attempt.
• The foothold traditionally cut into the ice from which the person who throws the rock pushes off for delivery.
• A mattock or a miner's pickaxe.
• An improvised device or solution to a problem.
• An expedient, temporary solution, such as a small patch or change to code, meant to be replaced with a more elegant solution at a later date; a workaround.
• A computer programmer who makes quick but inelegant changes to computer code to solve problems or add features.
• A computer programmer, particularly a veteran or someone not immediately expected to be capable of programming.
• An interesting technical achievement, particularly in computer programming.
• A trick, shortcut, skill, or novelty method to increase productivity, efficiency or ease.
• An illegal attempt to gain access to a computer network.
• A video game or any computer software that has been altered from its original state.
• Time check.
• The act of striking an opponent with one's hockey stick, typically on the leg but occasionally and more seriously on the back, arm, head, etc.
• A swing of the bat at a pitched ball by the batter, particularly a choppy, ungraceful one that misses the ball such as at a fastball.
• A kick on the shins in football of any type.
• Confinement of an officer to their stateroom as a punishment.
• An airplane of poor quality or in poor condition.
• A board which the falcon's food is placed on; used by extension for the state of partial freedom in which they are kept before being trained.
• A food-rack for cattle.
• A rack used to dry something, such as bricks, fish, or cheese.
• A grating in a mill race.
• A horse for hire, especially one which is old and tired.
• A person, often a journalist, hired to do routine work.
• Someone who is available for hire; hireling, mercenary.
• A taxicab (hackney cab) driver.
• A vehicle let for hire; originally, a hackney coach, now typically a taxicab.
• A hearse.
• An untalented writer.
• One who is professionally successful despite producing mediocre work. (Usually applied to persons in a creative field.)
• A talented writer-for-hire, paid to put others' thoughts into felicitous language.
• A political agitator. (slightly derogatory)
• A writer who hires himself out for any sort of literary work; an overworked man; a drudge.
• A procuress.
• A small ball usually made of woven cotton or suede and filled with rice, sand or some other filler, for use in hackeysack.

Related

Similar words

• crack
• exploit
• band-aid, contrivance, improvision, improvisation, kludge, makeshift, quick fix, patch
• lifehack
• nag

Origin

• From Middle English hacken, hakken, from Old English haccian, from Proto-Germanic *hakkōną ("to chop; hoe; hew"), from Proto-Indo-European *keg-, *keng-.
• Cognate with Saterland Frisian häkje ("to hack"), West Frisian hakje ("to hack"), Dutch hakken ("to chop up; hack"), German hacken ("to chop; hack; hoe"), Danish hakke ("to chop"), Swedish hacka ("to hack; chop"), French hacher ("to chop").
• The computer senses date back to at least 1955 when it initially referred to creative problem solving. By 1963, the negative connotations of “black hat” or malicious hacking had become associated with telephone hacking (cf. phreaking).
• Variations of hatch, heck.
• Abbreviation of hackney, probably from place name Hackney.
• From hackysack