warez en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /wɑːɹɛz/ (uncommon)
- /wɛə(ɹ)z/
- (US) audio
Etymology
The leetspeak form of wares, as a contraction of software.
Meanings
-
(Internet, Leet, dated, uncountable, usually) Software that is illegally obtained or distributed.
Warez appeared in the 1980s with the advent of Bulletin Board Systems.
2012, Eric Diehl, Securing Digital Video […] , Springer Science & Business Media, →ISBN, page 16:Too many gamers see nothing wrong with downloading “warez” (usually pronounced “wares,” but also “wah-rez”), retail software products that have been “ripped” to make them smaller and remove copy protection.
1999 April, T. Liam McDonald, “WaReZ the Logic?”, in Maximum PC, →ISSN, page 41:By the end of the day Mad Hatter, a ringleader of the software piracy group called the Inner Circle, will have poured 300 Mbytes of illegal “warez” onto the Internet.
1997 April 1, David McCandless, “Warez Wars”, in Wired, →ISSN:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| juarez | Internet, alternative | lexicographic | |
| warez | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Translations (7)
ja 割れ (software illegally obtained or distributed) · ja 割れもの (software illegally obtained or distributed) · ko 와레즈 (software illegally obtained or distributed) · pl warez (software illegally obtained or distributed) · ru варез (software illegally obtained or distributed) · ka ვარეზი (software illegally obtained or distributed) · ja ワレズ (software illegally obtained or distributed)