: 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
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
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
The story skips over Ella’s rise from political wonk to lieutenant governor in the office of Albert Brooks’ avuncular Governor Bill.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 10 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for wonk
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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
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
The story skips over Ella’s rise from political wonk to lieutenant governor in the office of Albert Brooks’ avuncular Governor Bill.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 10 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for wonk
Cite this Entry
“Wonk.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wonk. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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