Definition of wonk
: a person preoccupied with arcane details or procedures in a specialized field; broadly : nerd a policy wonk a computer wonk
wonkishness
nounPeople Are Reading
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 of wonk from the Web
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That's the question every policy wonk who cares about climate change has been asking since election night in November.
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Joseph Curtin, one of Ireland’s leading climate-policy wonks and a member of its official climate advisory council, also believes the United States should exit the treaty.
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Perhaps even more surprisingly to health wonks, MacDonough ruled that a section banning Planned Parenthood from getting Medicaid reimbursements could remain.
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The role of Dr. Ally Hextall, CDC wonk and Laurence Fishburne's right-hand woman, was right up her alley.
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According to TiVo, a Pandora app is due out soon, while a partnership with the widget wonks at FrameChannel is already in the works.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wonk'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of wonk
origin unknown
WONK Defined for English Language Learners
wonk
playDefinition of wonk for English Language Learners
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: a person who knows a lot about the details of a particular field (such as politics) and often talks a lot about that subject
Learn More about wonk
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See words that rhyme with wonk Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for wonk
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