Definition

1. Noun:
   • A thin, crisp, baked wafer: A type of dry, unsweetened or slightly sweetened biscuit, typically made from flour and water.
   • A small explosive firework: A paper tube containing a small explosive charge and a fuse, which produces a loud bang when lit.
   • A party favor: A decorated paper tube that makes a popping sound when two people pull it apart, often containing a small toy, a paper hat, or a joke.
   • (Informal, often offensive) A poor white person from the rural southern United States: A derogatory term with historical origins.
   • (Computing, informal) A person who gains unauthorized access to computer systems: Often with malicious intent, such as to steal data or cause damage. This term is distinct from "hacker," which can have a neutral or positive connotation.

Examples of Usage

• Thin, crisp wafer:
  • She served cheese and crackers at the party.
  • I like to eat soup with crackers.
• Explosive firework:
  • The children set off a cracker in the backyard.
• Party favor:
  • We pulled a Christmas cracker and read the joke inside.
• Computer intruder:
  • A cracker breached the company's database and stole customer information.

Advanced Usage

• "to be/go crackers" (British informal): To be or become crazy or insane.
  • This noise is driving me crackers!
  • He must be crackers to try something so dangerous.

Variants and Related Words

• Crackers (adj, British informal): Crazy, mad (as in the idiom above).
• Crack (verb): To break something so that it splits but does not separate completely; to solve a difficult problem; to break into a computer system (from which "cracker" is derived in the computing sense).
• Nutcracker: A tool for cracking nuts.

Synonyms

• Biscuit (UK, for the food item).
• Firecracker (for the explosive).
• Hacker (though this is a broader and often less malicious term in computing).
• Redneck (a related, often derogatory term for a rural white working-class person, primarily in the US).

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

• Cracker-barrel (adj, US): Suggesting the simple, informal, and traditional opinions thought to be held in rural areas.
  • He had a cracker-barrel philosophy about life.

Related Idioms

• "Crackerjack" (adj/noun, informal, chiefly US): Exceptionally good; an expert.
  • She's a crackerjack programmer.
• "Hard/tough nut to crack": A difficult problem to solve or person to understand.
  • This puzzle is a tough nut to crack.

Noun

1. a party favor consisting of a paper roll (usually containing candy or a small favor) that pops when pulled at both ends
2. firework consisting of a small explosive charge and fuse in a heavy paper casing
3. a programmer who cracks (gains unauthorized access to) computers, typically to do malicious things
   • crackers are often mistakenly called hackers
4. a poor White person in the southern United States
5. a thin crisp wafer made of flour and water with or without leavening and shortening; unsweetened or semisweet