wonk
Americannoun
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a student who spends much time studying and has little or no social life; grind.
-
a stupid, boring, or unattractive person.
-
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.
noun
Other Word Forms
- wonkish adjective
Etymology
Origin of wonk
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
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The case is yet another example of Carr’s dramatic transformation from a low-key communications policy wonk into one of Trump’s staunchest cultural warriors.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2025
Facts are great when you’re a lawyer in court or when you’re a wonk writing policy briefs and refining legislative language.
From Salon • Mar. 1, 2025
Allow me to wonk out for a moment here.
From Slate • Feb. 4, 2025
They also flesh out a portrait of Mr. Obama as a steady-as-she-goes, hyper-disciplined but not especially warm, policy wonk who scrolled the Brookings Institution website for ideas and had to overcome his own political mistakes.
From New York Times • Mar. 22, 2024
Tina was a bighearted policy wonk with an infectious laugh and more hustle than just about anyone I knew.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
