wizard : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: wizard	by the DICT Development Group
6 results for wizard
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
wizard adj possessing or using or characteristic of or appropriate to supernatural powers; "charming incantations"; "magic signs that protect against adverse influence"; "a magical spell"; "'tis now the very witching time of night"- Shakespeare; "wizard wands"; "wizardly powers" Synonym(s): charming, magic, magical, sorcerous, witching(a), wizard(a), wizardly n someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field [syn: ace, adept, champion, sensation, maven, mavin, virtuoso, genius, hotshot, star, superstar, whiz, whizz, wizard, wiz] one who practices magic or sorcery Synonym(s): sorcerer, magician, wizard, necromancer, thaumaturge, thaumaturgist
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Wizard \Wiz"ard\, n. [Probably from wise + -ard.] 1. A wise man; a sage. [Obs.] See how from far upon the eastern road The star-led wizards [Magi] haste with odors sweet! --Milton. 2. One devoted to the black art; a magician; a conjurer; a sorcerer; an enchanter. The wily wizard must be caught. --Dryden.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Wizard \Wiz"ard\, a. 1. Enchanting; charming. --Collins. 2. Haunted by wizards. Where Deva spreads her wizard stream. --Milton.
From Jargon File (4.2.0, 31 JAN 2000) [jargon]:
wizard n. 1. Transitively, a person who knows how a complex piece of software or hardware works (that is, who {grok}s it); esp. someone who can find and fix bugs quickly in an emergency. Someone is a {hacker} if he or she has general hacking ability, but is a wizard with respect to something only if he or she has specific detailed knowledge of that thing. A good hacker could become a wizard for something given the time to study it. 2. The term `wizard' is also used intransitively of someone who has extremely high-level hacking or problem-solving ability. 3. A person who is permitted to do things forbidden to ordinary people; one who has {wheel} privileges on a system. 4. A Unix expert, esp. a Unix systems programmer. This usage is well enough established that `Unix Wizard' is a recognized job title at some corporations and to most headhunters. See {guru}, {lord high fixer}. See also {deep magic}, {heavy wizardry}, {incantation}, {magic}, {mutter}, {rain dance}, {voodoo programming}, {wave a dead chicken}.
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (15Feb98) [foldoc]:
wizard 1. A person who knows how a complex piece of software or hardware works (that is, who {grok}s it); especially someone who can find and fix bugs quickly in an emergency. Someone is a {hacker} if he or she has general hacking ability, but is a wizard with respect to something only if he or she has specific detailed knowledge of that thing. A good hacker could become a wizard for something given the time to study it. 2. A person who is permitted to do things forbidden to ordinary people; one who has {wheel} privileges on a system. 3. A Unix expert, especially a Unix systems programmer. This usage is well enough established that "Unix Wizard" is a recognised job title at some corporations and to most headhunters. See {guru}, {lord high fixer}. See also {deep magic}, {heavy wizardry}, {incantation}, {magic}, {mutter}, {rain dance}, {voodoo programming}, {wave a dead chicken}. 4. An interactive help utility that guides the user through a potentially complex task, such as configuring a {PPP} driver to work with a new {modem}. Wizards are often implemented as a sequence of {dialog boxes} which the user can move forward and backward through, filling in the details required. The implication is that the expertise of a human wizard in one of the above senses is encapsulated in the software wizard, allowing the average user to perform expertly. [{Jargon File}] (1998-09-07)
From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:
Wizard a pretender to supernatural knowledge and power, "a knowing one," as the original Hebrew word signifies. Such an one was forbidden on pain of death to practise his deceptions (Lev. 19:31; 20:6, 27; 1 Sam. 28:3; Isa. 8:19; 19:3).