: a person preoccupied with arcane details or procedures in a specialized field
Examples of wonk in a Sentence
the policy wonks in the government
the candidate has an army of policy wonks ready to write for him a position paper on virtually any issue
Recent Examples on the Web
In the hours after splashdown, space wonks noticed a large, unusual-looking white patch on the otherwise dark and scorched heat shield.
—
Denise Chow, NBC news, 14 Apr. 2026
This isn't a command-line interface just for hardcore wonks, either.
—K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 13 Apr. 2026
Policy wonks and software engineers were turned away at the door of the conservative tech think tank Foundation for American Innovation’s reception on Monday evening, held at MAGA hot spot Butterworth’s.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2026
Rafters, ranchers, anglers, hydrologists, energy wonks, and government officials have coordinated in the past to keep water in the river.
—Pete McBride, Time, 27 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for wonk
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Denise Chow, NBC news, 14 Apr. 2026
This isn't a command-line interface just for hardcore wonks, either.
—K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 13 Apr. 2026
Policy wonks and software engineers were turned away at the door of the conservative tech think tank Foundation for American Innovation’s reception on Monday evening, held at MAGA hot spot Butterworth’s.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2026
Rafters, ranchers, anglers, hydrologists, energy wonks, and government officials have coordinated in the past to keep water in the river.
—Pete McBride, Time, 27 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for wonk
Cite this Entry
“Wonk.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wonk. Accessed 17 Apr. 2026.
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