Wanker is slang for "one who wanks (
masturbates
Masturbation is the sexual stimulation of one's own genitals for sexual arousal or other sexual pleasure, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation may involve hands, fingers, everyday objects, sex toys such as vibrators, or combinatio ...
)", but is most often used as a general insult. It is a
pejorative
A pejorative or slur is a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or a disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hostility, or disregard. Sometimes, a ...
term of English origin common in Britain and other parts of the English-speaking world (mainly
Commonwealth nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...
), including Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. It initially referred to an "
onanist" and is
synonym
A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...
ous with the word ''
tosser
Wanker is slang for "one who wanks (Masturbation, masturbates)", but is most often used as a general insult. It is a pejorative term of English origin common in Britain and other parts of the English-speaking world (mainly Commonwealth of Nat ...
''.
Meaning
The terms ''wank'' and ''wanker'' originated in British
slang
Slang is vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in spoken conversation but avoided in formal writing. It also sometimes refers to the language generally exclusive to the members of particular in-gro ...
during the late 19th and early 20th century.
[A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English: Colloquialisms and Catch Phrases, Fossilised Jokes and Puns, General Nicknames, Vulgarisms and Such Americanisms As Have Been Naturalised. Eric Partridge, Paul Beale. Routledge, 15 Nov 2002] 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 like ''jerk'' or ''jerk-off''.
[Etherington, Mike]
The very Best of British The American's guide to speaking British
/ref> More generally, ''wanker'' can carry suggestions of egotist
Egotism is defined as the drive to maintain and enhance favorable views of oneself and generally features an inflated opinion of one's personal features and importance distinguished by a person's amplified vision of one's self and self-importanc ...
ical and self-indulgent behaviour and this is the dominant meaning in Australia and New Zealand.
''Wanker'' may be indicated by a one-handed gesture, usually to an audience out of hearing range. 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".
In the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, 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 the RAF
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
and British prisons since the 1920s.
Differences in perceived levels of offensiveness
In December 2000, the Advertising Standards Authority published research on attitudes of the British public to pejoratives. It ranked ''wanker'' as the fourth most severe pejorative in English. The BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
describes it as "moderately offensive" and "almost certain" to generate complaints if used before the
.
In Australia, it is considered mildly offensive but is widely accepted and used in the media.