Werk / Werq

Werk, also spelled werq, is an emphatic reworking of "work" used to praise, encourage, or affirm a fierce performance, look, or attitude. To tell someone to "werk it" is to urge them to give everything they have; saying someone "werked" means they delivered spectacularly. The term traces to Black and Latino LGBTQ+ ballroom and drag culture, where it was tied to walking a runway and giving a category everything. RuPaul's Drag Race carried the word into mainstream use, and it now circulates widely as a general expression of hype. Its many spellings reflect its spoken, expressive roots in queer vernacular.