Pwn

For other uses, including acronyms, see PWN.

The slang term Pwn (see pronunciation note below), used primarily in the Internet gaming culture, means to "own" or to soundly defeat an opponent. It is sometimes used for taunting of an in-game enemy and gloating over victories. It can also be used, especially by non-gamers, in the context of getting "pwned" by The Man.

In Internet security jargon, to "pwn" means "to compromise" or "to control", specifically another computer (server or PC), web site, gateway device, or application; it is synonymous with one of the definitions of hacking. An outside party who has "owned" or "pwned" a system has obtained unauthorized administrative control of the system.

The term was one of 16 to appear on the 2006 "List of Words and Phrases Banished from the Queen's English for Misuse, Overuse and General Uselessness," released annually by Lake Superior State University.

Etymology

The word "pwn" may have arisen and spread as a typo (or fat-finger) of the word "own," arising from the proximity of the 'p' and 'o' keys on a standard English keyboard. Sometime in the 1980s, along with the advent of the hacker phenomenon, "pwned" became a synonym for "hacked" or "taken over by exploitation of a vulnerability." The word "pwn" remains in use as Internet social-culture slang meaning: to take unauthorized control of someone else or something belonging to someone else by exploiting a vulnerability.

Pronunciation

Given the recent development of the word, and its primary use in written form only, there is no single accepted pronunciation of pwn; as w does not typically represent vowels in English, arguments about the "correct" pronunciation occur with relative frequency. Pronunciation is usually determined by personal preference and context. The three most common pronunciations are [oʊn] (own, in reference to the original misspelling) and [poʊn] (as in pone) or [pɔːn] (as in pawn, from the common view that the word originated in the game chess).

Other variations include:

• [pu:n] (as in "harpoon"; W has this sound in cwm and crwth)
• [pəʔˈoʊn] (puh-own)
• [piˈoʊn] (pee-own)
• [pʌn] (pun)
• [pwin] (pween)
• [pɔːn] (pawn)
• [paʊn] (to rhyme with gown)
• [pwəʔˈn̩] (pwuh-nn)
• [pwoʊn] (pwone)
• [pwɪn] (pwin, rhyming with win)
• [pəwən] (puh-wun)
• [piː dʌbəlju ɛn], pronouncing each letter separately

Use, online and in popular culture

File:EZGGutin2.jpg

A use of pwn in humor.

Some popular quotes involving "pwn" include:

• The 2006 South Park episode, "Make Love, Not Warcraft," satirized the game World of Warcraft. In the episode, the word is pronounced [poʊn] (pone), rhyming with "own."
  • "Looks like you're about to get pwned. Yeah!!!" - Eric Cartman (~20m 30s into episode)
  • "That was such über-pwnage" - Kyle Broflovski (soon after above)

• In Teen Girl Squad (see issue 10), "PØwned" appears on the screen and is pronounced by Strong Bad as "Puh-owned! Or however you say that!" Later the derivative "P4wned" appears (referring to a pawnshop) and is pronounced "Puh-awned."

• During the telecast of the 2006 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions, Daniel Negreanu tells Mike Matusow that Mike Sexton "pwned" (pronounced [poʊnd]) Matusow with an especially good play. The closed-captioning, however, misinterpreted Negreanu's remark as "boned."

• The Internet TV show Pure Pwnage claims that the word is pronounced "own," as it was a spelling mistake in the first place.

• In the movie Employee of the Month, the character played by Dane Cook uses "pwned" (pronounced "poned") during a competitive scene.

• The vodcast Bikini News, in their episode Guide To Getting Your Crappy Video Seen Online!!!, states that by following their advice, "you'll 'pwn' all of us!"

• In popular Newgrounds series "Thwomps" Thwomp #1 can be heard saying "Pw3ed" pronounced sounding like: Pwinned

See also

• Internet slang
• Noob
• Owned
• Pure Pwnage
• Leet (1337)