geek Hear it!

geek Definition

geek (gēk)

noun

  1. a performer of grotesque or depraved acts in a carnival, etc., such as biting off the head of a live chicken
  2. Slang any person considered to be different from others in a negative or bizarre way, as a teenager seen as being socially or physically awkward
  3. Slang a person regarded as being especially enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and skillful in the use of computers

Etymology: < dial. geck, fool < Du gek, madman, fool < MLowG geck: orig. echoic of unintelligible cries

geek Related Forms

geeky (gēkē) adjective geek·i·er, geek·i·est

Geek Hacker Definition

One use of this term dates from the 1920s and referred to a carnival actor who, among other things, bit off the heads of chickens. In the 1960s and 1970s, a geek was a derogatory term given to smart social outcasts stereotyped as wearing thick glasses and plastic shirt-pocket protectors. Currently the term geek has a broader and less derogatory connotation for specialists in various fields of knowledge, including computer-savvy individuals, some of whom like to hack systems. Computer geeks, as they approach their thirties, often tend to find well-paying jobs such as system administrators or system architects.

See Also: Administrator; Hacker.

Geek.com.Geek. [Online, 2004.] Geek.com Website. http://www.geek .com/glossary/glossary_search.cgi?geek.

geek Telecom Definition

  1. A performer in carnival sideshows whose act consists of grotesque or depraved acts, such as biting the heads off live chickens or snakes.The origin of the term is uncertain. Some suggest it has roots in the Low German gek, meaning fool. Others suggest it is echoic of unintelligible cries, much like eek.
  2. Anyone considered to be socially awkward, especially those with excessive interests in computers or related technologies. See also nerd and techie.

geek Usage Examples

Preposition: that

backup: So now you never have to worry about losing those cds. remember: it's not just geeks that backup there computers.

Converse of object

call: Actually, Rick doesn't mind being called a geek.

Adjective modifier

  • self-confessed: Last test of the year starts on Thursday tho As for work I have become a self-confessed postcode geek.
  • fellow: Please spread the word on your blogs, invite friends, family, or fellow geeks.
  • inner: Surprisingly it didn't, which made my inner geek 's day.
  • sad: I drag the sad geek out from behind the partition.
  • comic: Along with my sci-fi fixation, I am also a huge comic book geek.
  • true: I really felt like I was with the true computer geeks.

Modifies a noun

  • dinner: Another geek dinner is about to take place - this time host by Dave Shea, the head gardener at The CSS Zen Garden.
  • node: The test on line 0053 will be false as the left sub tree of the geek node is not empty.
  • toy: I'd write more, but I've got lovely new geek toys to set up and play with!
  • stuff: Feel like I can't write much of certain things here, like geek stuff.
  • talk: I really enjoyed, lots of geek talk and some good laughs.
  • code: Thanks to Kate Pickering's article on Knitty, I've now constructed my knitter's geek code.

Noun used with modifier

  • techno: The full article by Paul Mason is in the extended entry for the techno geeks out there.
  • alpha: Most people who write and blog about this sort of thing are pretty tech savy / alpha geeks.
  • sci-fi: Each group has a theme, such as the Addams Family, college students, or sci-fi geeks.
  • gadget: Well it's official, I'm a gadget geek.
  • computer: Lord knows I have seen many computer geeks who just didn't have a clue about how to run a business.
  • horror: In fact, it obeys every rule of the slasher movie that Scream ' s horror geeks abuse, pervert and worship.

Browse dictionary entries near geek

  1. geegaw
  2. gee whiz
  3. Gee, Maggie
  4. gee
  5. Geddes, Sir Eric Campbell
  6. Geddes
  7. GED
  8. gecko
  9. gearwheel
  10. gearshift
  1. Geelong
  2. Geelvink Bay
  3. geese
  4. geez
  5. geezer
  6. gefilte fish
  7. gegenschein
  8. Gehenna
  9. Gehry
  10. Geiger counter