OpenSynonym

hack

/hæk/

NOUN

1. A tool used for chopping or digging

A cutting or digging tool, such as a mattock or miner's pickaxe, used to break or remove material.

1.1. Digging and mining tool

A heavy hand tool used for breaking up soil, rock, or other hard material.

Synonyms

  • mattock
  • pickaxe
  • pick

Examples

  • The miner used a hack to loosen the hard ground.
  • He picked up a hack and began breaking through the compacted soil.

Related Words

  • axe
  • hoe
  • shovel
  • excavation tool

NOUN

2. A forceful chopping blow or its mark

A sharp, forceful blow made with a chopping motion, or a gouge or notch produced by such a blow.

2.1. Chopping or striking blow

A forceful strike delivered with a chopping motion.

Synonyms

Examples

  • One powerful hack split the branch in two.
  • The woodcutter made a deep hack with his axe.

Related Words

2.2. Gouge or notch

A cut, indentation, or rough mark left by a chopping blow.

Synonyms

  • gouge
  • notch
  • indentation
  • cut

Examples

  • A deep hack remained in the wooden post.
  • The carpenter noticed a fresh notch where the blade had struck.

Related Words

NOUN

3. A dry or broken cough

A short, rough, dry cough, sometimes occurring repeatedly or interrupting speech.

3.1. Dry or persistent cough

A harsh, dry coughing sound, often caused by irritation in the throat or respiratory tract.

Synonyms

  • cough
  • hackling
  • coughing fit

Examples

  • A persistent hack interrupted his sleep.
  • She tried to speak but a dry hack stopped her.

Related Words

  • throat irritation
  • wheeze
  • chest congestion
  • sputum

NOUN

4. An attempt or try

An effort or attempt to do something, especially when the outcome is uncertain.

4.1. An attempt at doing something

An effort to accomplish a task or achieve a particular result.

Synonyms

Examples

  • He took a hack at solving the difficult puzzle.
  • My first hack at repairing the old radio was unsuccessful.

Related Words

NOUN

5. A shortcut or practical solution

A clever trick, shortcut, or improvised method used to make a task easier, faster, or more efficient.

5.1. Practical shortcut or productivity trick

A simple technique or unconventional method that saves time or effort when performing a task.

Synonyms

Examples

  • She shared a useful kitchen hack for peeling garlic quickly.
  • This packing hack helps travelers save space in their luggage.

Related Words

NOUN

6. A quick or makeshift change to computer code

A temporary or improvised change to a computer program, often made to solve a problem quickly rather than provide a polished long-term solution.

6.1. Temporary software fix

A quick code modification used to correct a problem or make software work, sometimes at the expense of maintainability.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The developer added a small hack to fix the display problem.
  • The temporary hack solved the issue but made the code harder to maintain.

Related Words

  • bug fix
  • code change
  • technical debt
  • software maintenance
  • refactoring

6.2. Technical programming achievement

An ingenious technical solution or accomplishment, particularly one involving creative computer programming.

Synonyms

  • technical feat
  • programming achievement
  • innovation
  • clever solution

Examples

  • The team demonstrated an impressive hack during the programming competition.
  • His latest hack showed how creatively the system could be used.

Related Words

NOUN

7. An unauthorized attempt to access a computer system

An attempt to gain access to a computer, network, or online account without authorization, often by exploiting technical weaknesses.

7.1. Unauthorized computer access

An intrusion into a computer system or network without the owner's permission.

Synonyms

  • intrusion
  • cyberattack
  • system breach
  • unauthorized access

Examples

  • The company detected a hack on its internal network.
  • The security team investigated the attempted hack.

Related Words

NOUN

8. Modified computer software or video game

A computer program or video game that has been altered from its original version, often to change its features or behavior.

8.1. Modified game or software

An altered version of a game or application that differs from the original release.

Synonyms

  • modification
  • mod
  • modified version
  • altered version

Antonyms

  • original version
  • unmodified version

Examples

  • The player downloaded a hack that changed the game's features.
  • The community shared a modified version of the game.

Related Words

  • modding
  • game modification
  • customization
  • software patch

NOUN

9. A swing or strike in sports

A swinging or striking action in certain sports, especially a batter's swing at a pitched ball or a kick or blow directed at an opponent's legs.

9.1. Swing at a pitched ball

A batter's attempt to hit a ball by swinging a baseball bat.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The batter took a wild hack at the fastball.
  • His first hack missed the pitch completely.

Related Words

  • batter
  • pitch
  • baseball
  • strikeout
  • foul ball

9.2. Kick or strike to the legs

A kick or forceful strike directed at an opponent's shins in football or a similar sport.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The referee penalized the player for a dangerous hack.
  • The defender received a warning after a late hack at his opponent.

Related Words

NOUN

10. A person who performs routine or mediocre work

A person who produces ordinary, unoriginal, or mediocre work, especially in journalism or another creative profession.

10.1. Untalented or mediocre writer

A writer or journalist regarded as lacking originality, skill, or professional distinction.

Synonyms

  • mediocre writer
  • untalented writer
  • hack writer
  • scribbler
  • drudge

Antonyms

Examples

  • The critic dismissed him as a hack who produced formulaic articles.
  • She refused to be treated as a hack despite years of routine assignments.

Related Words

10.2. Professionally successful but unoriginal creative worker

A person in a creative profession who earns a living and achieves professional success despite producing work considered mediocre or conventional.

Synonyms

  • mediocre professional
  • commercial writer
  • hack artist

Antonyms

  • original artist
  • innovator
  • master

Examples

  • The novelist was successful commercially but was often criticized as a hack.
  • The film director was accused of becoming a predictable hack.

Related Words

  • commercial artist
  • professional writer
  • creative worker
  • mediocrity

10.3. A hired writer or literary worker

A writer who is paid to produce literary work or express ideas on behalf of someone else.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The politician hired a hack to prepare his speeches.
  • The businessman employed a writer-for-hire to turn his ideas into a book.

Related Words

  • copywriter
  • author
  • editor
  • speechwriter
  • commissioned writing

NOUN

11. A person hired to perform routine work

Someone employed to carry out repetitive, low-level, or menial tasks, often for another person or organization.

11.1. Hireling or drudge

A person who works for hire, often performing routine or tedious duties without much independence.

Synonyms

  • hireling
  • drudge
  • hired hand
  • menial worker
  • lackey

Examples

  • He was treated like a hack, expected to complete every tedious assignment.
  • The wealthy employer relied on hired hands to manage routine tasks.

Related Words

NOUN

12. A political agitator

A person who works to promote political causes or stir up political opposition, sometimes in a derogatory sense.

12.1. Political agitation

Someone who attempts to influence public opinion or encourage political action, often through provocative or partisan activity.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The newspaper described him as a political hack stirring up public anger.
  • The opposition accused the speaker of acting as a partisan agitator.

Related Words

NOUN

13. A horse available for hire

A horse rented for riding, especially one that is old, tired, or used for ordinary journeys.

13.1. Hired riding horse

A horse made available for rental or public use, often for riding along roads or established routes.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The travelers rented a hack for their journey through the countryside.
  • The old hack carried visitors along the road.

Related Words

  • riding horse
  • mount
  • stable
  • horseback riding
  • carriage horse

NOUN

14. A hired vehicle or its driver

A vehicle available for hire, especially a taxicab, or a driver of such a vehicle.

14.1. Taxicab

A vehicle that carries passengers for payment, traditionally associated with the term hackney cab.

Synonyms

Examples

  • They hailed a hack outside the station.
  • A black hack waited at the curb to collect its passengers.

Related Words

14.2. Taxi driver

A person who drives a hired vehicle and transports passengers for payment.

Synonyms

  • cabdriver
  • taxi driver
  • cabman
  • hackney driver

Examples

  • The hack knew every shortcut through the city.
  • The old hack had driven passengers around the city for decades.

Related Words

NOUN

15. A hearse

A vehicle used to transport a coffin or dead body, especially as part of a funeral procession.

15.1. Funeral vehicle

A vehicle used to carry a coffin to a funeral service or burial place.

Synonyms

  • hearse
  • funeral car
  • funeral coach

Examples

  • The hack slowly followed the funeral procession.
  • A black hearse waited outside the chapel.

Related Words

NOUN

16. A small ball used in hacky sack

A small ball, usually made of woven fabric or suede and filled with rice, sand, or another material, used in the footbag game known as hacky sack.

16.1. Footbag used in a game

A small weighted ball that players keep in the air by kicking it with their feet.

Synonyms

  • footbag
  • hacky sack

Examples

  • He tossed the hack to his friend before the game began.
  • The group formed a circle and passed the footbag around.

Related Words

NOUN

17. A rack or structure used for holding materials

A frame, rack, or grating used to hold, dry, or support materials such as food, bricks, or other goods.

17.1. Drying rack

A rack used to hold materials while they dry, including bricks, fish, or cheese.

Synonyms

  • drying rack
  • rack
  • drying frame

Examples

  • The bricks were arranged on a hack to dry in the open air.
  • The fish were placed on a drying rack before being stored.

Related Words

17.2. Cattle or falcon feeding rack

A structure used to hold food for cattle or to support food placed for a falcon.

Synonyms

  • feeding rack
  • food rack
  • feed holder

Examples

  • The farmer filled the hack with fresh fodder for the cattle.
  • The falcon's food was placed on a small feeding board.

Related Words

  • manger
  • feeding trough
  • falconry
  • livestock

17.3. Grating in a mill race

A grating or screen fitted into a mill race to catch or separate material carried by flowing water.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The mill worker cleared debris from the hack in the water channel.
  • Leaves collected against the grating in the mill race.

Related Words

NOUN

18. A period of confinement as punishment

A disciplinary restriction that confines a naval officer to their own stateroom as a form of punishment.

18.1. Naval disciplinary confinement

A punishment in which a naval officer is restricted to their stateroom.

Synonyms

  • confinement
  • restriction
  • house arrest

Examples

  • The officer was placed under hack for violating naval regulations.
  • His punishment involved confinement to his stateroom.

Related Words

VERB

19. A kick in football

A kick or blow delivered to an opponent's shins in football or a related sport.

19.1. Striking an opponent's legs

To kick or strike an opponent on the shins during play.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The defender was sent off for hacking an opponent on the shins.
  • He was warned for hacking the opposing player during the match.

Related Words

VERB

20. To chop or cut roughly

To cut, chop, or strike something repeatedly or forcefully, often in a rough or careless manner.

20.1. Rough cutting or chopping

To cut something with repeated, forceful blows rather than with a smooth or precise motion.

Synonyms

Examples

  • They hacked through the thick undergrowth with machetes.
  • He hacked at the frozen ground with a pickaxe.
  • The workers hacked down the overgrown branches.

Related Words

20.2. Striking or hitting repeatedly

To hit someone or something with repeated or forceful blows.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The attacker hacked at the wooden door with a heavy tool.
  • He hacked at the object in a desperate attempt to break it.

Related Words

20.3. Cutting or injuring a surface

To make a rough cut, gouge, or indentation in a material.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The blade hacked a deep notch into the tree trunk.
  • The rough tool hacked the surface of the wooden panel.

Related Words

VERB

21. To cough noisily

To cough in a short, rough, dry, or repeated manner.

21.1. Rough or dry coughing

To make a harsh coughing sound, often repeatedly or because of throat irritation.

Synonyms

  • cough
  • hackle

Examples

  • He hacked all night because of the dry air.
  • She began hacking after inhaling the smoke.

Related Words

  • wheeze
  • splutter
  • throat irritation
  • respiratory irritation

VERB

22. To endure or tolerate a difficult situation

To withstand, endure, or put up with something unpleasant or challenging.

22.1. Putting up with hardship

To continue enduring an uncomfortable, difficult, or unpleasant situation.

Synonyms

Antonyms

  • avoid
  • escape
  • evade

Examples

  • I cannot hack another week of working without sleep.
  • She wondered whether she could hack the demanding training schedule.

Related Words

  • persevere
  • put up with
  • resilience
  • hardship
  • tough it out

VERB

23. To make a quick or improvised change to software

To modify computer code quickly, often by introducing a temporary or inelegant solution to make a program work.

23.1. Applying a quick code fix

To make a small, often temporary, change to software in order to fix a problem or achieve a specific result.

Synonyms

  • patch
  • modify
  • alter
  • work around
  • tweak

Examples

  • The programmer hacked the script to make it run on the older system.
  • They hacked together a quick fix before the product launch.

Related Words

23.2. Accomplishing a difficult programming task

To complete a challenging technical task through programming skill and ingenuity.

Synonyms

Examples

  • She hacked together a working prototype in a single afternoon.
  • The team hacked a solution to the complicated technical problem.

Related Words

  • software development
  • coding
  • technical achievement
  • problem-solving

23.3. Working with technology in a technical way

To explore, manipulate, or work with a system or device at a detailed technical level.

Synonyms

Examples

  • He spent the weekend hacking on an old computer.
  • The engineers hacked the device to understand how its internal components worked.

Related Words

  • reverse engineering
  • programming
  • systems analysis
  • technical experimentation

VERB

24. To gain unauthorized access to a computer system

To access or manipulate a computer, network, website, or online account without permission, often by exploiting a security weakness.

24.1. Breaking into a computer system

To gain unauthorized access to a computer or network by exploiting technical vulnerabilities.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Examples

  • Someone tried to hack the company's computer network.
  • The attackers hacked into the server through an unpatched vulnerability.

Related Words

24.2. Accessing another person's online account

To gain control of or access an individual's online account without their permission.

Synonyms

  • compromise
  • break into
  • gain unauthorized access to

Antonyms

  • protect
  • secure

Examples

  • The criminal hacked her email account and changed the password.
  • He discovered that someone had hacked into his social media profile.

Related Words

  • account security
  • identity theft
  • password
  • phishing
  • data breach

VERB

25. To strike or swing at something in sports

To make a forceful or uncontrolled swinging or striking movement, especially at a ball or an opponent.

25.1. Swinging at a baseball

To swing a bat at a pitched ball, often with a forceful or uncontrolled movement.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The batter hacked at the pitch but failed to make contact.
  • He hacked at the ball and sent it toward the foul line.

Related Words

  • batter
  • pitch
  • baseball
  • foul
  • strikeout

25.2. Striking with a hockey stick

To strike an opponent's leg with a hockey stick or make a clumsy attempt to hit the puck.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The player was penalized for hacking his opponent's leg.
  • He hacked at the puck as it slid toward the goal.

Related Words

VERB

26. To strike lightly during massage

To apply a series of light, rhythmic striking movements as a massage technique.

26.1. Percussion massage

To tap or strike the body lightly and rhythmically as part of a massage technique known as tapotement.

Synonyms

Examples

  • The therapist hacked lightly at the muscles as part of the percussion technique.
  • The massage involved rhythmic tapping along the back.

Related Words

  • massage
  • tapotement
  • percussion
  • muscle relaxation

VERB

27. To make something commonplace or clichéd

To make something trite, conventional, or unoriginal through excessive or indiscriminate use.

27.1. Making an expression or idea clichéd

To use or repeat something so often that it loses its originality or becomes commonplace.

Synonyms

  • vulgarize
  • trivialize
  • make commonplace
  • make clichéd

Antonyms

  • innovate
  • originalize
  • refresh

Examples

  • The repeated slogan hacked an otherwise fresh idea into a cliché.
  • The phrase had been hacked through years of careless repetition.

Related Words

VERB

28. To ride a horse at a regular pace

To ride a horse at a steady pace, especially along a road rather than across open country.

28.1. Riding along a road

To ride a horse at a regular pace on a road or established route.

Synonyms

  • ride
  • travel on horseback
  • hack out

Examples

  • They hacked along the country road before sunset.
  • She hacked her horse to the nearby village.

Related Words

  • horseback riding
  • equestrian
  • bridle
  • saddle
  • trail riding

VERB

29. To let something out for hire

To make a horse, vehicle, or other property available for use by paying customers.

29.1. Offering a vehicle or horse for hire

To provide a vehicle or horse for temporary use in exchange for payment.

Synonyms

Antonyms

  • withdraw
  • retain

Examples

  • The stable hacked out horses to visitors who wanted to explore the countryside.
  • The company hired out its vehicles to tourists.

Related Words

VERB

30. To live or work as a drudge

To spend one's life performing tedious, routine, or exhausting work, often with little satisfaction or recognition.

30.1. Performing tedious work

To work continuously at repetitive or menial tasks without much independence or reward.

Synonyms

  • drudge
  • toil
  • labor
  • slave away

Examples

  • He hacked away at routine office work for years.
  • She was tired of hacking through endless administrative tasks.

Related Words

  • routine
  • monotony
  • menial work
  • exhaustion
  • overwork

VERB

31. To use something excessively or indiscriminately

To use something so frequently or carelessly that it becomes worn, commonplace, or loses its original effect.

31.1. Overusing a word, phrase, or idea

To repeat or employ an expression, idea, or method so often that it becomes stale or unoriginal.

Synonyms

Antonyms

  • conserve
  • preserve
  • refresh

Examples

  • The writer hacked the same metaphor until it lost its impact.
  • The advertising campaign hacked its slogan through repeated use.

Related Words

VERB

32. To play hacky sack

To play a footbag game by keeping a small weighted ball in the air using the feet and other parts of the body except the hands.

32.1. Playing a footbag game

To kick and pass a small footbag among players while trying to keep it from touching the ground.

Synonyms

  • play footbag
  • play hacky sack

Examples

  • The students hacked in a circle during their lunch break.
  • They gathered in the park to hack for an hour.

Related Words