wonk

[ wongk ]
See synonyms for wonk on Thesaurus.com
nounSlang.
  1. a student who spends much time studying and has little or no social life; grind.

  2. a stupid, boring, or unattractive person.

  1. a person who studies a subject or issue in an excessively assiduous and thorough manner: They’re searching for a policy wonk to lead the economic institute’s think tank.

Origin of wonk

1
An Americanism first recorded in 1960–65; of expressive origin; nautical slang wonk “a midshipman,” and Australian slang “white person; gay man” are probably independent formations

Other words from wonk

  • wonk·ish, adjective

Words Nearby wonk

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use wonk in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for wonk

wonk

/ (wɒŋk) /


noun
  1. informal a person who is obsessively interested in a specified subject: a foreign policy wonk

Origin of wonk

1
C20: of uncertain origin

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