gank v. to rob, rip off, or con (someone). Editorial Note: See also gank, n. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
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I’d never heard of this word before I saw it here yesterday. Then, last night, I was watching the show Freaks & Geeks on DVD. In the episode “Tests and Breasts,” Daniel explains that he “ganked” his upcoming algebra test—i.e., stole it from the teacher’s office.
Interesting note: the episode is set in Michigan in 1980, but was written and aired in 1999. I wonder if the slang is that old, or if that was an anachronistic bit of dialogue?
This term has popped up more and more frequently in online journals / blogs to refer to material stolen from other posters, or taken and modified from another original posting. For example, if one blogger posts his answers to a set of five questions, another blogger might post his own answers to the same five questions and indicate that the list was “ganked” from the original poster.
I’ve also noticed this word used quite a bit in online gaming (esp. World of Warcraft) as meaning “to ambush” (usually with the result that you are killed). It also retains its meaning of “to steal” though.
We have used the word here for a long long time. grab + yank = gank meaning to steal. But nowadays, the younger generation have taken it to mean “gang kill” in online gaming.
I first heard it in 1988 on either an NWA album or an Eazy E album. The line I recall most clearly is from Eazy E’s “Still Talkin'” ,”bitch on a gank move to skeeze me just to say I got….. by Eazy”