as in nerds
a person slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits
the candidate has an army of policy wonks ready to write for him a position paper on virtually any issue
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Recent Examples of wonks
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
Elsewhere in the world, perhaps such a technical-sounding government decision would fall to the domain of data wonks and financial consultants.
—Isabel Debre, Fortune, 11 Feb. 2026
Some industry insiders and policy wonks will say the public needs a few economics lessons.
—Jonathan Lansner, Oc Register, 24 Oct. 2025
But there’s no way, the GTW accounting wonks insist, that the Buffs’ bean-counters would ever let CU give up a home game, and a home gate, for a jaunt across the pond.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 11 Oct. 2025
Don’t look now, but the wonks have come out with a way to measure how well AI entities do at forming relationships with people.
—John Werner, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Another, more recent precedent was the National Security Commission of Artificial Intelligence, formed in 2018 to study how American government policy wonks should react to the rising prevalence of AI.
—IEEE Spectrum, 25 Mar. 2022
Pete McBride, Time, 27 Feb. 2026
Elsewhere in the world, perhaps such a technical-sounding government decision would fall to the domain of data wonks and financial consultants.
—Isabel Debre, Fortune, 11 Feb. 2026
Some industry insiders and policy wonks will say the public needs a few economics lessons.
—Jonathan Lansner, Oc Register, 24 Oct. 2025
But there’s no way, the GTW accounting wonks insist, that the Buffs’ bean-counters would ever let CU give up a home game, and a home gate, for a jaunt across the pond.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 11 Oct. 2025
Don’t look now, but the wonks have come out with a way to measure how well AI entities do at forming relationships with people.
—John Werner, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Another, more recent precedent was the National Security Commission of Artificial Intelligence, formed in 2018 to study how American government policy wonks should react to the rising prevalence of AI.
—IEEE Spectrum, 25 Mar. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wonks
Noun
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Math nerds and dessert enthusiasts unite to celebrate Pi Day every March 14, the date that represents the first three digits of the mathematical constant pi.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 Mar. 2026
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Streamers, corporate entities, and big-name superstars have splashed around the same waters as the DIY SoundCloud nerds.—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Such comes with a 12-game win streak and computer numbers that make even the geeks party on Broadway.—
Noah White,
Miami Herald,
14 Mar. 2026
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Part sports hangout, part brewpub, The Ram is the sort of wide-net concept that draws families, high school football fans and — back when craft IPAs were cool — even beer geeks.—
Michael Deeds,
Idaho Statesman,
4 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wonks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wonks. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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