ˈwäŋ-kē 
ˈwȯŋ-
wonkier; wonkiest
US
: characteristic of, relating to, or suggestive of a wonk: such as
a
: preoccupied with arcane details or procedures in a specialized field
She can get wonky about the economy when she wants to, but what sets her apart is her ability to tell a coherent, populist story about it in a way that other members of her party are either unwilling or unable to do.—
Rebecca Traister
Rebecca Traister
b
: used by or appealing to wonks
… one of those politicians who actually find pleasure in the often-wonky details of public policy.—John Powers
John Powers
wonkiness
noun
won·ky
ˈwäŋ-kē
wonkier; wonkiest
Examples of wonky in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Sarah Scoles, JSTOR Daily, 31 July 2025
Under the wonky maneuver known as budget reconciliation, Republicans were able to greenlight the major tax bill through Congress without Democratic support in the Senate, bypassing the 60-vote threshold needed for most legislation to make it out of the upper chamber.
—Aris Folley, The Hill, 29 July 2025
The organization has even more wings further down on the roster.)
Green, who was acquired in the Kevin Durant trade, has projected as a wonky fit next to Booker since the day the trade went down.
—Morten Stig Jensen, Forbes.com, 29 July 2025
His monologue was characterized by a more straightforward disbelief, in contrast to longtime host Jon Stewart's more verbose and at times wonky takes.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 23 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for wonky
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Adjective
And the light left over from the Big Bang shows wonky anomalies that don’t necessarily line up with the standard model’s predictions.
—Sarah Scoles, JSTOR Daily, 31 July 2025
Under the wonky maneuver known as budget reconciliation, Republicans were able to greenlight the major tax bill through Congress without Democratic support in the Senate, bypassing the 60-vote threshold needed for most legislation to make it out of the upper chamber.
—Aris Folley, The Hill, 29 July 2025
The organization has even more wings further down on the roster.)
Green, who was acquired in the Kevin Durant trade, has projected as a wonky fit next to Booker since the day the trade went down.
—Morten Stig Jensen, Forbes.com, 29 July 2025
His monologue was characterized by a more straightforward disbelief, in contrast to longtime host Jon Stewart's more verbose and at times wonky takes.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 23 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for wonky
Cite this Entry
“Wonky.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wonky. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
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