Word.ws English Dictionary

balk

/bɔːk/US/bɔk/

balk noun: an uncultivated ridge formed in the open field system, caused by the action of ploughing.

Noun (1)

balk (plural balks)

  1. An uncultivated ridge formed in the open field system, caused by the action of ploughing.
    • How fruitfull are the ſeeming Barren places of Scripture. Bad Plow-men, which make Balkes of ſuch Ground.1647, Tho[mas] Fuller, “Scripture Observations”, in Good Thoughts in Worse Times. […], London: […] W. W. for John Williams […], →OCLC, section XVI (Text improved), page 89
  2. The wall of earth at the edge of an excavation.
  3. Beam, crossbeam; squared timber; a tie beam of a house, stretching from wall to wall, especially when laid so as to form a loft, "the balks".
  4. A hindrance or disappointment; a check.
    • , "Concealment of Sin"
      a balk to the confidence of the bold undertaker
  5. A sudden and obstinate stop.
    Synonyms:
    failure
  6. (obsolete) An omission.
  7. An illegal motion by the pitcher, intended to deceive a runner.
    Synonyms:
    feint
  8. (badminton) A motion used to deceive the opponent during a serve.
    Synonyms:
    feint
  9. The area of the table lying behind the line from which the cue ball is initially shot, and from which a ball in hand must be played.
  10. The area of the table lying behind the baulk line.
  11. The rope by which fishing nets are fastened together.

Verb

balk (third-person singular simple present balks, present participle balking, simple past and past participle balked)

  1. To be unwilling to do something; to refuse to proceed or do or allow something, either in general or only temporarily.
    • balked at paying a day's wages for a pencil; he said he would buy her one, but when he saw the price, he balked
    • Carla balked for a moment, but when the badge and identification was produced, she acquiesced immediately. "Of course, Director, what can I do for you?"2004, Derek Hart, Tidal Trap, page 114
  2. (especially, mule, etc) To stop short and refuse to go on or do something (such as jump).
    • The horse balked.
    • "Her horse balked at the jump and threw her," said Michael.1974, Sharon Salvato, Briarcliff Manor: A Novel, page 107
    Synonyms:
    jib
  3. To move fitfully, stopping frequently.
    • The horses balked up the canyon, / But we made it with half a load. / Got to the top with panniers. / Went back for the bedding stowed.1915, L. J. Dickinson, John O' Dreams, page 80
    • […] balked up the hills, then careened and slid on the downside, threatening to overturn.1993, Susan C. Feldhake, Seasons of the Heart, page 107
  4. To leave or make a balk or balks (ridges) in; to leave a ridge in by leaving partly unploughed.
    • But so well halt no man the plough, / That he ne balketh other while[c. 1386–1390, John Gower, edited by Reinhold Pauli, Confessio Amantis of John Gower: Edited and Collated with the Best Manuscripts, volume (please specify |volume=I, II, or III) (in Middle English)...
    • […] balking up the field.1906, Primrose McConnell, The Diary of a Working Farmer, page 151
  5. To stop, check, block (by or as if by an obstacle); to hinder, impede, thwart.
    • My Sport is always balkt, or cut short — I stumble over the Game me I would pursue —1733, William Congreve, The Old Batchelor: A Comedy, page 55
    • […] the sturdy cavalier was not to be balked in his purpose; […]1867 [1855?], William Hickling Prescott, History of the Reign of Philip the Second, King of Spain, page 48
  6. (obsolete, possibly) To leave heaped up; to heap up in piles.
    • Ten thousand bold Scots, two and twenty knights, / Balk'd in their own blood did Sir Walter see.c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and...
  7. (obsolete, possibly) To pass over or by (either by chance or intentionally); to avoid in passing.
    • Jericho was in his way from Galilee to Jerusalem: he baulks it not, though it were outwardly cursed.1612, Joseph Hall, Contempl. N. T.
    • I hope you will not balk Totteridge, if I am here.1664, Lady R. Russell, Letters
    1. (obsolete, possibly) To omit, miss, or overlook by chance, error, or inadvertance.
      • […] you cannot baulk your Road without the hazard of drowning1677, Owen Feltham, Resolves: Divine, Moral, Political. The tenth impression., page 46
    2. (obsolete, possibly) To miss intentionally; to avoid, ignore, or shun.
      • Sick he is, and keeps his bed, and balks his meat.1612–1634, [Joseph Hall], “(please specify the page)”, in [Contemplations vpon the Principall Passages of the Holy Storie], volume (please specify |volume=I to VIII), London, →OCLC
      • Nor doth he any creature balk, / But lays on all he meeteth.1627, Michaell [i.e., Michael] Drayton, “Nimphidia. The Court of Fayrie.”, in The Battaile of Agincourt. […], London: […] [Augustine Matthews] for William Lee, […], →OCLC
  8. (obsolete, possibly) To refuse (something).
    • And balke your bed for shame.1587, Tuberv., Trag. T. (1837), page 230
    • A bait you cannot balk Sir.1619, Fletcher, M. Thomas
  9. (obsolete, possibly) To let (something) slip; to fail to use or seize or keep (something).
    • to balk an opportunity
    • This was look'd for at your hand, and this as baulkt.1602, Shakspeare, Twelfth Night
  10. To disappoint, frustrate, or check.
    • to balk expectation
    • Nor doth it balk my charity, to find Th' Egyptian bishop of another mind:1777 [1692?], John Dryden, Original Poems, and Translations,: In Two Volumes [Rel. Laici?], page 223
  11. (obsolete, possibly) To quibble or bandy words with; engage in opposing, contradicting, or arguing with.
    • Her list in strifull termes with him to balke1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto II”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 12
    • They do not divide and baulk with God.1653, Manton, Works, IV 227
  12. (intransitive) To make a balk, a deceptive motion to deceive another player.
    • The best advice you can receive regarding balking is to always maintain poise and composure on the mound.2013, Aaron Wisewell, The Baseball Coach

Noun (2)

balk (plural balks)

  1. (UK, dialectal) A small brass ornament fixed at the top of a wand.

Proper noun capitalized: Balk

Balk (plural Balks)

  1. A surname.

balk meaning in Tamil, Marathi, Urdu and Bengali

balk in Tamil

முன்செல்ல மறு, சண்டித்தனம் செய், தடையில் முன்னேற மறு, குறிப்பிட்ட ஒன்றைச் செய்ய மறு, பின்வாங்கு, ஏமாற்று

balk in Marathi

to balk
कचरणे kacarṇe

balk in Urdu

شہ تیر, توجہ نہ دینا

balk in Bengali

বাধা দেওয়া, থমকে যাওয়া
More languagesFewer languages
balk in Malay
balak
balk in Indonesian
balak, balok

Examples of balk in a sentence

  • I’ve seen cattle that were handled in two identical facilities easily walk through one and balk in the other.1995, Temple Grandin, Thinking in Pictures, page 6:
  • […] thin road, gunning madly past the old rusty trucks balking up the mountain to Boulem while Badra drifted in and out of consciousness in the back.2006, Bret Lott, The Best Christian Short Stories, volume 1, page 127:
  • […] balking up the rows and running the water down from the balks;1935, Scientific Horticulture: Journal of the Horticultural, page 89:
  • Balked for the second time, the passion of his grief had found another outlet, was transformed into a passion of agonized rage.1932, Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, London: Chatto & Windus:

All 28 example sentences with balk

Synonyms of balk

3 more synonymsFewer synonyms

All synonyms of balk

Forms of balk

Noun
pluralbalks
alternative formbaulk
Verb
third-person singular presentbalks
present participlebalking
past participlebalked
pastbalked
Proper noun
pluralBalks

Past tense of balk: balked

Plural of balk: balks

Origin of balk

From Middle English balke, from Old English balca, either from or influenced by Old Norse bálkr (“partition, ridge of land”), from Proto-Germanic *balkô. Cognate with Dutch balk (“balk”), German Balken (“balk”), Italian balcone (“balcony”).

From Middle English balok, ballok (“knob”), from Old English bealluc (“testicle”, literally “little ball”). Doublet of ballock and bollocks.

Words formed from balk

Phrases with balk

Words that rhyme with balk

11 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about balk

What does balk mean?
Balk means an uncultivated ridge formed in the open field system, caused by the action of ploughing.
What is balk in Tamil?
Balk in Tamil is முன்செல்ல மறு, சண்டித்தனம் செய், தடையில் முன்னேற மறு. See Balk meaning in Tamil.
How do you use balk in a sentence?
I’ve seen cattle that were handled in two identical facilities easily walk through one and balk in the other.
What part of speech is balk?
Balk can be a noun, a verb or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce balk?
Balk is pronounced /bɔːk/ (UK).
What is the plural of balk?
The plural of balk is balks.

Words near balk in the dictionary

  1. balize
  2. balizes
  3. balićžunićite
  4. Baljeet
  5. Baljit
  6. balk
  7. balk line
  8. balk lines
  9. Balkan
  10. Balkan donkey
  11. Balkan donkeys

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: balk (page history and authors); Balk (page history and authors); balk (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); कचरणे (Marathi) (page history and authors); balk (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); balk (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-balk.wav.

Cite this entry: “balk.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/balk. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.