a person, as an artist or writer, who exploits, for money, his or her creative ability or training in the production of dull, unimaginative, and trite work; one who produces banal and mediocre work in the hope of gaining commercial success in the arts: As a painter, he was little more than a hack.
2.
a professional who renounces or surrenders individual independence, integrity, belief, etc., in return for money or other reward in the performance of a task normally thought of as involving a strong personal commitment: a political hack.
3.
a writer who works on the staff of a publisher at a dull or routine task; someone who works as a literary drudge: He was one among the many hacks on Grub Street.
4.
British.
a.
a horse kept for common hire or adapted for general work, esp. ordinary riding.
b.
a saddle horse used for transportation, rather than for show, hunting, or the like.
in O.E. tohaccian "hack to pieces," from W.Gmc. *khak- (cf. O.Fris. hackia, Du. hakken, O.H.G. hacchon), perhaps infl. by O.N. höggva "to hack, hew," from PIE *kau- "to hew, strike." Sense of "short, dry cough" is 1802. Noun meaning "an act of hacking" is from 1836; fig. sense of "a try, an attempt" is first attested 1898. Slang sense of "cope with" (such as in can't hack it) is first recorded in Amer.Eng. 1955, with a sense of "get through by some effort," as a jungle.
c.1700, originally, "person hired to do routine work," short for hackney "an ordinary horse" (c.1300), probably from place name Hackney (Middlesex), from O.E. Hacan ieg "Haca's Isle" (or possibly "Hook Island"). Now well within London, it was once pastoral. Apparently nags were raised on the pastureland there in early medieval times and taken to Smithfield horse market (cf. Fr. haquenée "ambling nag," an Eng. loan-word). Extended sense of "horse for hire" (1393) led naturally to "broken-down nag," and also "prostitute" (1579) and "drudge" (1546). Special sense of "one who writes anything for hire" led to hackneyed "trite" (1749); hack writer is first recorded 1826, though hackney writer is at least 50 years earlier. Sense of "carriage for hire" (1704) led to modern slang for "taxicab." Hacker "one who gains unauthorized access to computer records" is 1983, from slightly earlier tech slang sense of "one who works like a hack at writing and experimenting with software, one who enjoys computer programming for its own sake," 1976, reputedly coined at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Hack (v.) "illegally enter a computer system" is first recorded 1984.
hackjargon 1. Originally, a quick job that produces what is needed, but not well. 2. An incredibly good, and perhaps very time-consuming, piece of work that produces exactly what is needed. 3. To bear emotionally or physically. "I can't hack this heat!" 4. To work on something (typically a program). In an immediate sense: "What are you doing?" "I'm hacking TECO." In a general (time-extended) sense: "What do you do around here?" "I hack TECO." More generally, "I hack "foo"" is roughly equivalent to ""foo" is my major interest (or project)". "I hack solid-state physics." See Hacking X for Y. 5. To pull a prank on. See hacker. 6. To interact with a computer in a playful and exploratory rather than goal-directed way. "Whatcha up to?" "Oh, just hacking." 7. Short for hacker. 8. See nethack. 9. (MIT) To explore the basements, roof ledges, and steam tunnels of a large, institutional building, to the dismay of Physical Plant workers and (since this is usually performed at educational institutions) the Campus Police. This activity has been found to be eerily similar to playing adventure games such as Dungeons and Dragons and Zork. See also vadding. See also neat hack, real hack. [The Jargon File] (1996-08-26)
Hack\, n. [See Hatch a half door.]1. A frame or grating of various kinds; as, a frame for drying bricks, fish, or cheese; a rack for feeding cattle; a grating in a mill race, etc. 2. Unburned brick or tile, stacked up for drying.
Hack\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Hacked; p. pr. & vb. n. Hacking.] [OE. hakken; akin to D. hakken, G. hacken, Dan. hakke, Sw. hacka, and perh. to E. hew. Cf. Hew to cut, Haggle.]1. To cut irregulary, without skill or definite purpose; to notch; to mangle by repeated strokes of a cutting instrument; as, to hack a post. My sword hacked like a handsaw. --Shak. 2. Fig.: To mangle in speaking. --Shak.
Hack\, n. 1. A notch; a cut. --Shak. 2. An implement for cutting a notch; a large pick used in breaking stone. 3. A hacking; a catch in speaking; a short, broken cough. --Dr. H. More. 4. (Football) A kick on the shins. --T. Hughes. Hack saw, a handsaw having a narrow blade stretched in an iron frame, for cutting metal.
Hack\, n. [Shortened fr. hackney. See Hackney.]1. A horse, hackneyed or let out for common hire; also, a horse used in all kinds of work, or a saddle horse, as distinguished from hunting and carriage horses. 2. A coach or carriage let for hire; particularly, a a coach with two seats inside facing each other; a hackney coach. On horse, on foot, in hacks and gilded chariots. --Pope. 3. A bookmaker who hires himself out for any sort of literary work; an overworked man; a drudge. Here lies poor Ned Purdon, from misery freed, Who long was a bookseller's hack. --Goldsmith. 4. A procuress.
Hack\, v. t. 1. To use as a hack; to let out for hire. 2. To use frequently and indiscriminately, so as to render trite and commonplace. The word "remarkable" has been so hacked of late. --J. H. Newman.
Hack\, v. i. 1. To be exposed or offered or to common use for hire; to turn prostitute. --Hanmer. 2. To live the life of a drudge or hack. --Goldsmith.
Hack"ney\, n.; pl. Hackneys. [OE. haceney, hacenay; cf. F. haquen['e]e a pacing horse, an ambling nag, OF. also haquen['e]e, Sp. hacanea, OSp. facanea, D. hakkenei, also OF. haque horse, Sp. haca, OSp. faca; perh akin to E. hack to cut, and orig. meaning, a jolting horse. Cf. Hack a horse, Nag.]1. A horse for riding or driving; a nag; a pony. --Chaucer. 2. A horse or pony kept for hire. 3. A carriage kept for hire; a hack; a hackney coach. 4. A hired drudge; a hireling; a prostitute.
Hag"gle\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Haggled; p. pr. & vb. n. Haggling.] [Freq. of Scot. hag, E. hack. See Hack to cut.] To cut roughly or hack; to cut into small pieces; to notch or cut in an unskillful manner; to make rough or mangle by cutting; as, a boy haggles a stick of wood. Suffolk first died, and York, all haggled o'er, Comes to him, where in gore he lay insteeped. --Shak.
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