bark

1 of 5

verb (1)

ˈbärk 

barked; barking; barks

intransitive verb

1

a

: to make the characteristic short loud cry of a dog

b

: to make a noise resembling a bark

2

: to speak in a curt loud and usually angry tone : snap

3

informal : to produce a usually sharp, sudden pain

… at 36 and with his mustache turning gray and his body barking back in pain, Luis DeLeon is in spring training with the Cubs.

—Joseph A. Reaves

The shoulder is pain-free for now, but his elbow barks at him occasionally …

—Mike Lupica

transitive verb

1

: to utter in a curt loud usually angry tone

an officer barking orders

2

: to advertise by persistent outcry

barking their wares

bark

2 of 5

noun (1)

1

a

: the sound made by a barking dog

b

: a similar sound

2

: a short sharp peremptory tone of speech or utterance

bark

3 of 5

noun (2)

1

: the tough exterior covering of a woody root or stem

specifically : the tissues outside the cambium that include an inner layer especially of secondary phloem and an outer layer of periderm

2

: cinchona sense 2

3

: a candy containing chocolate and nuts that is made in a sheet and broken into pieces

bark

4 of 5

verb (2)

barked; barking; barks

transitive verb

1

: to treat with an infusion of tanbark

2

a

: to strip the bark from

b

: to rub off or abrade the skin of

barked a shin on the desk

bark

5 of 5

noun (3)

variants or barque

1

a

: a small sailing ship

b

: a sailing ship of three or more masts with the aftmost mast fore-and-aft rigged and the others square-rigged

2

: a craft propelled by sails or oars

Phrases

bark up the wrong tree

: to promote or follow a mistaken course (as in doing research)

someone's bark is worse than his/her bite

—used to say that someone known for harsh or angry speech does not actually treat others in an unfairly harsh or harmful way

Chairman Paul Millership was larger than life and shouted his orders loud and clear. But his bark was worse than his bite and he was scrupulously fair to employees who put in the effort.

—The Nottingham Evening Post

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• snap
• snarl

Verb (2)

• flay
• hull
• husk
• peel
• shell
• shuck
• skin

Noun (3)

• dinghy
• sailboat
• windjammer

Examples of bark in a Sentence

Verb (1)

the new supervisor found that speaking to people with a civil tongue got better results than barking at them

Verb (2)

barking a tree will probably kill it

Noun (3)

took a small bark out on the lake

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Don't forget crepe myrtles also drop seeds, pods, and bark too. —Steve Bender, Southern Living, 10 May 2024

The echoes of barking and blubber-slapping have grown louder in San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf. —Emma Bowman, NPR, 4 May 2024

No player in the OKC lineup is over 25, and the team shares a youthful carefree camaraderie, as evidenced by its tradition of gathering around the star of the game during his post-game interview and barking. —Sean Gregory, TIME, 2 May 2024

Responding units swarmed the hotel, and bodycam footage from different angles showed police barking orders to open the door and come out with hands up. —Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 29 Mar. 2024

So what if the room directly across from our suite was occupied by a large black dog named Bella who was barking ferociously and lunging at the window facing our room? —Sam Apple, New York Times, 14 Mar. 2024

There was no mastermind at its center; Q barked out his pronouncements, but was no more real than the Wizard of Oz. —Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 6 Apr. 2024

My dog started barking and running down the hallway, like, mom, the earth is shaking, get your ass up and run with me. —Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 5 Apr. 2024

That year, Jo said, boys would bark at them, make lewd gestures, and use homophobic and transphobic slurs, and adults rarely intervened. —Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2024

Noun

To create an enfleurage, a perfumer places petals, leaves, bark, or whole flowers into a solid layer of neutral fat, traditionally tallow or lard. —Lily Stewart, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 May 2024

Locals could hear Bentley bark as people approached and took things from the crash site. —Angela Andaloro, Peoplemag, 8 May 2024

Visitors to San Francisco’s Pier 39 are often greeted by a familiar cacophony of barks, splashes and blubber-splats from the city’s iconic sea lions. —Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 May 2024

Only one scorpion, the bark scorpion, is poisonous. —Abigail Celaya, The Arizona Republic, 4 May 2024

Order the cherry brandy and almond bark for pudding. —Jo Rodgers, Vogue, 3 May 2024

This seed-starting mix has a fine texture and is free of large pieces of bark or other organic matter. —Renee Freemon Mulvihill, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 May 2024

All parts of the plant are used for its medical applications, from the leaves and stems to the roots and bark. —Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 3 May 2024

The Japanese also taught their Nepali suppliers to harvest each crop just three years after planting, before the bark reddens. —Alex Travelli Uma Bista, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English berken, from Old English beorcan; akin to Old Norse berkja to bark, Lithuanian burgėti to growl

Noun (2)

Middle English, from Old Norse bark-, bǫrkr; akin to Middle Dutch & Middle Low German borke bark

Noun (3)

Middle English, from Middle French barque, from Old Occitan barca, from Late Latin

First Known Use

Verb (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing bark

• bark beetle
• bark up the wrong tree
• elm bark beetle
• smaller European elm bark beetle
• someone's bark is worse than his/her bite

Kids Definition

bark

1 of 5 verb

ˈbärk 

1

: to make the short loud cry of a dog or a similar noise

2

: to shout or speak sharply

bark out an order

bark

2 of 5 noun

: the sound made by a barking dog

bark

3 of 5 noun

: the tough covering of a woody root or stem

bark

4 of 5 verb

1

: to strip the bark from

2

: to rub or scrape the skin of

barked her knee

bark

5 of 5 noun

variants or barque

1

: a small sailing ship

2

: a three-masted ship with the first two masts square-rigged and the last fore-and-aft rigged

Etymology

Verb

Old English beorcan "to bark"

Noun

Middle English bark "tree covering," of Scandinavian origin

Noun

Middle English bark "a small ship," from early French barque (same meaning)

Medical Definition

bark

noun

ˈbärk 

1

: the tough exterior covering of a woody root or stem

2

: cinchona sense 3