wonky

¹

[ wong-kee ]

adjective

, Slang.

, won·ki·er, won·ki·est.

1. (of a person) shaky, groggy, or unsteady.
2. not exactly straight or balanced; off-kilter:

   a wonky chair with an uneven leg.

3. not working properly; faulty; unreliable:

   Something went wonky with my computer.

4. crazy; mad:

   That's just odd logic and wonky reasoning.

wonky

²

[ wong-kee ]

adjective

, Slang.

, won·ki·er, won·ki·est.

1. stupid; boring; unattractive.
2. relating to, appealing to, or characteristic of a wonk; concerned with minute details of a topic or issue:

   a wonky bureaucrat.

wonky

/ ˈwɒŋkɪ /

adjective

1. shaky or unsteady
2. not in correct alignment; askew
3. liable to break down or develop a fault

Other Words From

• won·ki·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of wonky¹

First recorded in 1915–20; perhaps variant of dialectal wanky, equivalent to wank(le) ( Middle English wankel, Old English wancol; wench ) + -y ¹

Origin of wonky²

First recorded in 1975–80; wonk ( def ) + -y ¹( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of wonky¹

C20: variant of dialect wanky, from Old English wancol

Example Sentences

All-star voting is up 70 percent compared with 2020, according to people with knowledge of the situation, but that rush of fan voting hasn’t produced any wonky results.

From Washington Post

You don’t have to worry about pairing and wonky Bluetooth connections.

From Popular-Science

Schedules in the traditional sense are increasingly a thing of the past and are instead often dictated by algorithms, which can result in wonky hours, with employees sometimes given two hours of work one day and eight the next.

From Washington Post

The cookies didn’t come out perfectly round, which made for a few wonky sandwiches, with caramel spilling out from the sides.

From Eater

For example, some of these might sound pretty good but the battery-life might be lacking or the fit might be super comfortable but other smart features like touch-control could be wonky.

From Popular-Science

Much ink has been spilled over the wonky science and plot contrivances of Interstellar.

From The Daily Beast

Justin Bieber This wonky first pitch offers further proof that Justin Bieber struggles with the definition of a straight line.

From The Daily Beast

The store became famous for “wonky carrots”—the type often rejected by supermarkets on aesthetic grounds.

From The Daily Beast

According to the latest news in aviation, the world of air travel has gone a little wonky.

From The Daily Beast

This could all change if Maryland decides to veer left and elect Heather Mizeur, a wonky, pro-pot married lesbian, as governor.

From The Daily Beast

He straightened his back more, making it pop and gave her his devilish grin, the one where his wonky eyebrow went up and down.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• rickety
• unstable
• unsteady
• wobbly