Meanings
plural hypervisors
- computingA firmware or software system that provides a virtual machine and allows it to operate directly on underlying hardware (instead of via emulation), but within specified constraints.
The hypervisor is the component that translates the virtual machines into the underlying hardware. There are two types of hypervisors: The type 1 hypervisor runs directly on the host hardware; the type 2 or hosted hypervisor runs in software.
2011, Edward Whalen, Oracle VM Implementation and Administration Guide, McGraw Hill Professional, →ISBN, page 17Synonyms: virtual machine monitor
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA firmware or software system that provides a virtual machine and allows it to operate directly on underlying hardware (instead of via emulation), but within specified constraints.
Origin
Blend of hyper- + supervisor.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Finnish hypervisori, virtuaalikonemonitori
- hypervisorisystem that provides a virtual machine
- virtuaalikonemonitorisystem that provides a virtual machine
German Hypervisor
- Hypervisorsystem that provides a virtual machine
Romanian hipervizor
- hipervizorsystem that provides a virtual machine
Spanish hipervisor
- hipervisorsystem that provides a virtual machine
Cite this entry
hypervisor. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hypervisor
“hypervisor.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hypervisor. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hypervisor,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hypervisor.
Source: hypervisor on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.