What does wanker mean?
“Wanker” is chiefly a British informal insult meaning a contemptible or stupid person. Its force comes from being openly dismissive: calling someone a wanker suggests that they are worthless, irritating, or worthy of contempt rather than merely mistaken or unsuccessful. The word also has a vulgar sexual meaning. As a noun, it can refer to someone who masturbates, and as a verb it means to masturbate. The sexual senses are explicit and unsuitable in most polite settings, while the insult is similarly confrontational and derogatory. Although the personal-insult sense is now dominant in everyday British usage, it grew from a formation involving “wank,” a vulgar term for masturbation, and the suffix “-er,” which can identify the person performing an action. The word is memorable because its bluntness reflects a familiar pattern of British slang: a crude or comical expression becomes a general term of severe contempt.
A contemptible or contemptibly stupid person, used as a derogatory insult.
"I don't trust him; he behaved like a complete wanker."
Informal and highly insulting. It is especially associated with British English and should be used only in contexts where offensive language is appropriate.
A person who masturbates, used in vulgar language.
"The comedian made a joke about a teenager who was a compulsive wanker."
This is an explicit, vulgar sense and is rarely appropriate in formal or polite speech.
To masturbate.
"The characters made crude jokes about wanking in the dormitory."
This is vulgar British slang and is unsuitable for formal or polite contexts.
The regular plural of the noun, used for people regarded as contemptible; it can also refer to people who masturbate in the vulgar sense.
"Those two wankers took credit for the team's success."
Wanker is a blunt piece of British slang whose modern insult sense has far outgrown its vulgar sexual literal meaning.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does wanker come from?
Wanker is an English formation combining the vulgar verb “wank” with the suffix “-er.” The suffix can indicate a person who performs an action, so the word has a straightforward sexual meaning in its literal use. Over time, the expression was also used as a general term of contempt, and that insulting sense is now the dominant one. Its underlying root is English slang, and the word does not have a secure, well-established set of non-English cognates.
Related word forms
How wanker is actually used
The term is informal, derogatory, and often insulting rather than merely humorous. The sexual senses are vulgar; the personal-insult sense is highly offensive and should generally be avoided in formal or respectful contexts.
Easily confused with wanker
A banker works in finance, whereas a wanker is an insulting term for a contemptible person.