bark

1
[ bahrk ]
/ bɑrk /

noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

to utter in a harsh, shouting tone: barking orders at her subordinates.

Idioms for bark

    bark at the moon, to protest in vain: Telling her that she's misinformed is just barking at the moon.
    bark up the wrong tree, to assail or pursue the wrong person or object; misdirect one's efforts: If he expects me to get him a job, he's barking up the wrong tree.

Origin of bark

1
before 900; Middle English berken, Old English beorcan; akin to Old English borcian to bark, Old Norse berkja to bluster, Lithuanian burgė́ti to growl, quarrel, Serbo-Croatian br̀gljati to murmur

OTHER WORDS FROM bark

bark·less, adjective

Definition for bark (2 of 3)

bark 2
[ bahrk ]
/ bɑrk /

noun

verb (used with object)

Origin of bark

2
1250–1300; Middle English < Old Norse bǫrkr (genitive barkar)

OTHER WORDS FROM bark

bark·less, adjective

Definition for bark (3 of 3)

bark 3

or barque

[ bahrk ]
/ bɑrk /

noun

Nautical. a sailing vessel having three or more masts, square-rigged on all but the aftermost mast, which is fore-and-aft-rigged.
Literary. a boat or sailing vessel.

Origin of bark

3
1425–75; late Middle English barke < Old French barque ≪ Late Latin barca, Latin *bārica, bāris < Greek bâris Egyptian barge < Coptic barī barge

Example sentences from the Web for bark

British Dictionary definitions for bark (1 of 3)

bark 1
/ (bɑːk) /

noun

verb

Word Origin for bark

Old English beorcan; related to Lithuanian burgěti to quarrel, growl

British Dictionary definitions for bark (2 of 3)

bark 2
/ (bɑːk) /

noun

a protective layer of dead corky cells on the outside of the stems of woody plants
any of several varieties of this substance that can be used in tanning, dyeing, or in medicine
an informal name for cinchona

verb (tr)

Word Origin for bark

C13: from Old Norse börkr; related to Swedish, Danish bark, German Borke; compare Old Norse björkr birch

British Dictionary definitions for bark (3 of 3)

bark 3
/ (bɑːk) /

noun

a variant spelling (esp US) of barque

Scientific definitions for bark

bark
[ bärk ]

The protective outer covering of the trunk, branches, and roots of trees and other woody plants. Bark includes all tissues outside the vascular cambium. In older trees, bark is usually divided into inner bark, consisting of living phloem, and outer bark, consisting of the periderm (the phelloderm, cork cambium, and cork) and all the tissues outside it. The outer bark is mainly dead tissue that protects the tree from heat, cold, insects, and other dangers. The appearance of bark varies according to the manner in which the periderm forms, as in broken layers or smoother rings. Bark also has lenticels, porous corky areas that allow for the exchange of water vapor and gases with the interior living tissues.

Idioms and Phrases with bark

bark