Wanker

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Wanker is a pejorative term of British origin, common in Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, English Canada and South Africa.

Contents 1 Meaning 2 Wanker in other contexts 3 Usage 4 See also 5 References 6 Further reading

[edit] Meaning

Wanker literally means "one who wanks" (masturbates). It is normally intended as a general insult rather than as an accusation. Wanker has similar meanings and overtones to American pejoratives like "jerk",^[1] "jerk-off", and "prick". One particular connotation is of someone self-obsessed or a show-off (usually male).^[2]

The term "wanker" originated from British slang in the 1940s, based on the verb "wank".^[3] By the 1970s, the general meaning of wanker had shifted from its literal origin (as a masturbator) to that of a generic insult;^[4] for example, "a contemptible person". This shift in usage is comparable to that of "dick" or "jerk."

In Australia the word has developed a metaphorical usage, in which to wank or to be a wanker implies egotistical and self-indulgent behaviour. This meaning is used in phrases like smug wanker, egotistical wanker or pretentious wanker.^[5] Wanker is sometimes used to refer to a person in the same way as snob for subjects perceived as pretentious; for instance, wine wanker, fashion wanker, car wanker.^[6] This meaning is shown in Whatareya?, a song by Tism, which contrasts "yobs" (uncouth working class) to "wankers" (pretentious intellectuals).^{[citation needed]}

Wanker may be indicated by a one-handed gesture, usually to an audience out of hearing range.^[7] It is shown by curling the fingers of the hand into a loose fist and moving the hand back and forth symbolically to imitate male masturbation. This is equivalent to saying, "[you are a] wanker". Some motorists show the wanking gesture in front of the rear-view mirror, where other motorists from behind can see the gesture.

[edit] Wanker in other contexts

• Wanker can also have other meanings, depending on context. Some American college students use it as a slang term for penis. This usage implies that the purpose of the penis is for masturbation^[8]
• Wanker is also an English language surname; according to the 1990 census, "Wanker" is the 53,492nd most common surname in the United States.^[9]
• A common use is in the phrase "The Referee's a Wanker", or "Who's the wanker in the black?", commonly chanted by football supporters to express disapproval towards a referee, almost invariably following a decision unfavourable to their team.

[edit] Usage

In December 2000, research published by the Advertising Standards Authority into attitudes of the British public to pejoritives ranked wanker as the fourth most severe pejorative in English.^[10] The BBC describes it as 'moderately offensive' and 'almost certain' to generate complaints if used before the watershed.^[11]

[edit] See also

• Taunt

[edit] References

1. ^ Etherington, Mike: The very Best of British The American's guide to speaking British
2. ^ Ludowyk, Frederick: Anatomy of Swearing
3. ^ Online Etymology Dictionary
4. ^ Broader use of term esp. Aus
5. ^ http://au.geocities.com/austlingsoc/proceedings/als2003/stollznow.pdf
6. ^ http://au.geocities.com/austlingsoc/proceedings/als2003/stollznow.pdf
7. ^ Etherington, Mike: The very Best of British The American's guide to speaking British
8. ^ Cameron, Deborah 'Naming of Parts: Gender, Culture, and Terms for the Penis among American College Students' in American Speech Vol. 67, No. 4 p372
9. ^ 1990 US Census
10. ^ Delete expletives?. Advertising Standards Authority. Retrieved on January 6, 2007. (pdf)
11. ^ BBC - Editorial guidelines, definition of offensive language (accessed 2007-01-20)

[edit] Further reading

• Karen Stollznow, 2004, Whinger! Wowser! Wanker! Aussie English: Deprecatory language and the Australian ethos. In Christo Moskovsky (ed), Proceedings of the 2003 Conference of the Australian Linguistic Society. [1]
• Jenny Cheshire, 1991, English Around the World: sociolinguistic perspectives. Published by Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0521395658.
• Anthony McEnery and Tony McEnery, 2005 ,Swearing in English: Bad Language, Purity and Power from 1586 to the Present. Published by Routledge, ISBN 0415258375.
• Etymology online [2]
• 19 November 1996. "Wanker." The Mavens' Word of the Day. Random House, Inc. [3]
• Websters Online Dictionary: Wanker