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Becoming who you're not:
sudo and su
su stands for Super User, aka “root”. If root has a password, and you know that password, you can become root with the su command – or you if you know another user's password, you may become that user.
bob@locutus:~$ su steve
Password: [steve's password]
steve@locutus:~$
sudo is similar but different – sudo grants permission to become another user based on the original user's permission, not on the knowledge of the new user's password.
bob@locutus:~$ sudo -s steve
Password: [bob's password]
steve@locutus:~$