bark

[ bahrk ]

/ bɑrk /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR bark ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the abrupt, harsh, explosive cry of a dog.

a similar sound made by another animal, as a fox.

a short, explosive sound, as of firearms: the bark of a revolver.

a brusque order, reply, etc.: The foreman's bark sent the idlers back to their machines.

a cough.

verb (used without object)

(of a dog or other animal) to utter an abrupt, explosive cry or a series of such cries.

to make a similar sound: The big guns barked.

to speak or cry out sharply or gruffly: a man who barks at his children.

Informal. to advertise a theater performance, carnival sideshow, or the like, by standing at the entrance and calling out to passersby.

to cough.

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

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

SYNONYMS FOR bark

11 shout, bellow, yell, roar, bawl.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR bark ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM bark

bark·less, adjective

Words nearby bark

barium sulphate, barium thiosulfate, barium titanate, barium x-ray, barium yellow, bark, bark beetle, bark cloth, bark is worse than his bite, bark up the wrong tree, barkeeper

Definition for bark (2 of 3)

bark ²

[ bahrk ]

/ bɑrk /

noun

the external covering of the woody stems, branches, and roots of plants, as distinct and separable from the wood itself.

Tanning. a mixture of oak and hemlock barks.

candy, usually of chocolate with large pieces of nuts, made in flat sheets.

verb (used with object)

to rub off or scrape the skin of, as by bumping into something: to bark one's shins.

to remove a circle of bark from; girdle.

to cover, enclose, or encrust with or as if with bark.

to treat with a bark infusion; tan.

to strip the bark from; peel.

Origin of bark

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

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

A neighborhood dog had begun to bark, and they were worried about the police coming.

The Stacks: The Judas Priest Teen Suicide Trial |Ivan Solotaroff |June 28, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The wire is long gone, but a rusted snag remains entombed in the bark.

How the Kings of Fracking Double-Crossed Their Way to Riches |ProPublica |March 13, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
“Impossible,” began the other, but was silenced by a sort of bark from Mr. Wilde.

Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show |Robert W. Chambers |February 20, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
It all boils down to scratching your name in the bark of a tree.

Mel Brooks Is Always Funny and Often Wise in This 1975 Playboy Interview |Alex Belth |February 16, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

The needles of the yew tree can kill you, but the bark is important for many modern drugs.

This Exhibit Could Kill You: The Museum of Natural History Takes on Poison |William O’Connor |January 8, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
On the upper Tokachi, however, they are covered with the bark of trees.

Alone with the Hairy Ainu |A. H. Savage Landor
How can a sheep dog work a flock of sheep unless he can bite occasionally as well as bark?

The Way of All Flesh |Samuel Butler
The bark provides a ready means of distinguishing this tree.

Forest Trees of Illinois |Fuller George D.
The cells of its own generation that were crowded in the other direction made part of an annual layer of bark.

Trees Worth Knowing |Julia Ellen Rogers
These Indians wore garments of bark, which they wove like cloths, and then drew on like coats of mail.

The History of Antiquity, Volume IV (of 6) |Max Duncker

British Dictionary definitions for bark (1 of 3)

bark ¹

/ (bɑːk) /

noun

the loud abrupt usually harsh or gruff cry of a dog or any of certain other animals

a similar sound, such as one made by a person, gun, etc

his bark is worse than his bite he is bad-tempered but harmless

verb

(intr) (of a dog or any of certain other animals) to make its typical loud abrupt cry

(intr) (of a person, gun, etc) to make a similar loud harsh sound

to say or shout in a brusque, peremptory, or angry tone he barked an order

US informal to advertise (a show, merchandise, etc) by loudly addressing passers-by

bark up the wrong tree informal to misdirect one's attention, efforts, etc; be mistaken

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)

to scrape or rub off skin, as in an injury

to remove the bark or a circle of bark from (a tree or log)

to cover or enclose with bark

to tan (leather), principally by the tannins in barks

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

In addition to the idioms beginning with bark

bark is worse than his bite
bark up the wrong tree

also see:

talk one's arm off (the bark off a tree)

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bark