Word: Balk
Speech Type: Verb
Etymology:
late Old English balc, from Old Norse bálkr ‘partition’. The original use was ‘unploughed ridge’, later ‘land left unploughed by mistake’, hence ‘blunder, omission’, giving rise to the verb use ‘miss (a chance)’. A late Middle English sense ‘obstacle’ gave rise to the verb senses ‘hesitate’ and ‘hinder’
Audio Pronunciation:
Phonetic Spelling:
bɔː(l)k
Dialects: British English
Definition:
hesitate or be unwilling to accept an idea or undertaking
Short Definition:hesitate
Examples:- he balked at such a drastic solution
Variant Forms:
- baulk
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