Etymology
From own, possibly born out of a typographical error (the adjacency of o and p on qwerty keyboards).
Pronunciation
Originally pronounced /əʊn/ (UK) / /oʊn/ (US), like own, and now often pronounced /pəʊn/[1][2] (UK) / /poʊn/[1][3][2] (US).[4][5] Other pronunciations include:
Verb
pwn (third-person singular simple present pwns, present participle pwning, simple past and past participle pwned or pwnd or pwnt)
- (Internet slang, online gaming, originally leet, transitive, intransitive) To own, to defeat or dominate (someone or something, especially a game or someone playing a game).
- Synonyms: own, pwnz0r
1999 August 5, Quaestor, “Re: [SP] So..the first victim of the Evil/Hero System”, in rec.games.computer.ultima.online (Usenet), retrieved 2016-09-23, message-ID <37AA8154.D77E6EB8@Skara.Brae>:2nd guard: "Yeah, shiiit! I PWNED YO @zz!"
2001, Edward Glamkowski, alt.games.diablo2 (Usenet):Otherwise I use fury as my normal attack. Fury completely pwns!
2003, James Grahame, alt.games.everquest (Usenet):When you get to the Temple of Marr, look very closely at the vases at zone-in and see if you can find the picture where Mith Marr "pwns" someone.
2004, Bronney Hui, alt.comp.periphs.videocards.nvidia (Usenet):My Trident pwns the Cirrus Logics!
References
Connie Eble, in Julie Coleman (ed.), Global English Slang: Methodologies and Perspectives (2014, →ISBN: "own/pwn (pronounced either on or pon) 'to dominate an opponent, often in a video game'"
Bonnie Nardi, My Life as a Night Elf Priest: An Anthropological Account →ISBN, page 16: "In PvP, players enjoy “pwning” opponents, that is, defeating them, in heated contests. The term pwn (pronounced “pone”) comes from own, slang for defeat, and is said to have originated when a player mistakenly typed a “p” instead of an “o,” ..."