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Wanker is slang for "one who wanks (masturbates)", but is most often used as a general insult. It is apejorative term of English origin common inBritain and other parts of the English-speaking world (mainlyCommonwealth of nations), includingIreland,Australia andNew Zealand. It issynonymous with the insulttosser.[1]
The termswank andwanker originated in Britishslang during the late 19th and early 20th century.[2][3] In modern usage, it is usually a general term of contempt rather than a commentary on sexual habits.Wanker has similar meanings and overtones to American pejoratives likejerk orjerk-off.[4] More generally,wanker can carry suggestions ofegotistical andself-indulgent behaviour and this is the dominant meaning in Australia and New Zealand.[5][6]
Wanker may be indicated by a one-handed gesture,[7] usually to an audience out of hearing range.[4] It is performed by curling the fingers of the hand into a loose fist and moving the hand back and forth to mime male masturbation, which is equivalent to saying, "that person is a wanker".[8]
In theUnited States, the term is understood but rarely used.
Related are terms such as "wanker's colic", for an undiagnosed visceral pain, and "wanker's doom", for excessive masturbation, from slang used in theRAF andBritish prisons since the 1920s.[2]
In December 2000, theAdvertising Standards Authority published research on attitudes of the British public to pejoratives. It rankedwanker as the fourth most severe pejorative in English.[9] TheBBC describes it as "moderately offensive" and "almost certain" to generate complaints if used before thewatershed.[10]
In Australia, it is considered mildly offensive but is widely accepted and used in the media.[5]
Mary Cresswell, an Americanetymologist, describes "wanker" as "somewhat more offensive in British use than Americans typically realize".[11] The word was used twice to comic effect inThe Simpsons episode "Trash of the Titans", which caused no offence to American audiences, but prompted complaints on occasions when the episode was broadcast unedited in the United Kingdom.[12]
"The Winker's Song (Misprint)" byIvor Biggun is one of many songs about masturbation. It describes the singer: "I'm a wanker, I'm a wanker. And it does me good like it bloody well should", and it reached number 22 in the 1978UK charts. It was banned byBBC Radio 1 and every national radio and television service.[13]
Phil Collins used the word in his 1984 cameo appearance onMiami Vice and has sometimes been credited with introducing the word to America.[14]
In the filmThis Is Spinal Tap,David St. Hubbins andNigel Tufnel both use the word out of earshot to describe fellow rock star Duke Fame after a chance encounter.[15]
On the American television showMarried... with Children,Peggy Bundy's maiden name is Wanker and her family is from the fictional Wanker County.
On the British television quiz showCountdown, contestants have to form the longest word possible from nine randomly selected letters. On one occasion, the letters permitted the spelling of "wanker" (or "wankers") and both contestants replied with the word, leading one to quip "we've got a pair of wankers". The sequence was edited out of the show (as is common withrisqué words), but has been shown as an outtake on other shows.[16] However, on a later occasion, "wanker" was offered, and this instance was left in and broadcast unedited.
During the New Zealand nationalcricket team's tours of Australia in the mid-1980s, Australian crowds extensively chanted "Hadlee's a wanker" while New Zealand fast bowlerRichard Hadlee was bowling, supported by hand-written banners. The reference even continued after Hadlee had retired, including a "Hadlee's a wanker" banner appearing at an Australia v Croatia soccer game during the 2006World Cup finals.[17]
The comedy showMork & Mindy featured a character named Mr. Wanker who was Mindy's landlord.[18] This was broadcast on American TV and later British TV.
Australian bandTISM released an album in 1998 entitledwww.tism.wanker.com (which was an active website for a few months after its release). One of the themes in its lyrics is breaking down male society into two distinct cultures:Yobs (the subject of thefirst single released from the album) and wankers. Its third single, "Whatareya?", offers examples of differences between the types and tells the listener to decide which one he is.
Hard rock (formerlyglam metal) bandVixen's 1998 albumTangerine contains a hidden instrumental track titled "Swatting Flies in Wanker County",[19] written by then-memberGina Stile.
In February 2009,U2 memberBono calledChris Martin a wanker live on air duringJo Whiley'sRadio 1 show.[20]
During a live radio debate on 28 May 2010, the futurePresident of Ireland,Michael D. Higgins, urged conservative American radio hostMichael Graham to "be proud to be a decent American rather than being just a wanker whipping up fear."[21][22]
When acting as the ombudsman onRed Eye w/Greg Gutfeld in 2011,Mike Baker presented a graph of the "wanker gap" for the first half of the program.[23] Baker has never given an explanation of the meaning of the "wanker gap."
Jack Vance wrote a science fiction book entitledServants of the Wankh in 1969. The title was changed toThe Wannek due to its sounding likewank.[24]
Iron Maiden's song "El Dorado" contains a veiled reference to the term in the line "I'm a clever banker's face, with just a letter out of place." In live performances, singerBruce Dickinson would change to an explicit mention: "I'm a clever wanker's face, just a banker out of place."[25]
In January 2015 the thenMayor of LondonBoris Johnson described British-bornjihadists as "pornography-obsessed inadequates who only turn to radical Islam when they fail to make it with girls...They are literally wankers".[26]
Cockney Wanker is a long running character inViz, based on astereotypical maleCockney.
Inspired by controversy aboutThe White Stripes' 2003 song "Seven Nation Army" connected toDonald Trump's2016 presidential campaign, the British composerBen Comeau wrote, in the style ofJ. S. Bach, a four-partfugue on the riff of that song to the words "Donald Trump is a wanker."[27][28]
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Media related toWanker at Wikimedia Commons