adj · noun · verb · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
wōk
Received-Pronunciation:/wəʊk/
UK:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Canada, General-American:/woʊk/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Australian:/wəʉk/
Australian:/wɐʉk/
New-Zealand:/wɐʉk/
Scotland:/wok/
India:/woːk/
rhymes with -əʊk
CMU ARPABET:W OW1 K
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
adj
Meaning 1
Awake: conscious and not asleep.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable, usually
Qualifier: African-American Vernacular or slang
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Promoting cancel culture, identitarianism, pontification, victim mentality, or virtue signalling.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: broadly, derogatory, not-comparable, slang, usually
Topics: government, politics
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
A person with progressive views or attitudes.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, derogatory, often, slang
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
noun
Meaning 6
A progressive ideology, in particular with regards to social justice.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: derogatory, slang, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: successor ideology
Antonyms: none provided
7
verb
Meaning 7
simple past of wake
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: form-of, past
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
8
verb
Meaning 8
past participle of wake
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: colloquial, dialectal, form-of, participle, past
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
Shortened from woken or woken up, or derived from dialectal use of woke (past participle of wake). The sense of being aware of social injustice dates to at least the 1930s. The derogatory use has been most commonly used as of the 2020s.
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Across languages
Translations
44 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Arabic:
يَقِظ
(yaqiẓ)
— alert to what is happening
Arabic:
نَبِه
(nabih)
— alert to what is happening
Finnish:
tiedostava
— alert to what is happening
French:
au fait
— alert to what is happening
Georgian:
ყურადღებიანი
(q̇uradɣebiani)
— alert to what is happening
Georgian:
ფხიზელი
(pxizeli)
— alert to what is happening
German:
aufmerksam
— alert to what is happening
German:
wachsam
— alert to what is happening
Hebrew:
נֵעוֹר
(ne'ór)
— alert to what is happening
Hungarian:
éber
— alert to what is happening
Hungarian:
jól értesült
— alert to what is happening
Hungarian:
felvilágosult
— alert to what is happening
Hungarian:
tájékozott
— alert to what is happening
Māori:
aroā
— alert to what is happening
Māori:
arowā
— alert to what is happening
Portuguese:
ligado
— alert to what is happening
Serbo-Croatian:
budan
— alert to what is happening
Serbo-Croatian:
svjestan
— alert to what is happening
Serbo-Croatian:
osviješten
— alert to what is happening
Spanish:
alerta
— alert to what is happening
Swedish:
upplyst
— alert to what is happening
Chinese Mandarin:
覺醒 /觉醒
(juéxǐng)
— politically correct; stereotypically leftist
Chinese Mandarin:
撅醒
(juēxǐng)
— politically correct; stereotypically leftist