Skip to main content

Word of the Day – Balk

By September 2, 2025Word of the Day

Balk also Baulk (verb)

balk

to stop, as at an obstacle, and refuse to proceed or to do something specified / (of a horse, mule, etc.) to stop short and stubbornly refuse to go on.

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English balca “covering, beam, ridge”; cognate with Old Norse bǫlkr “bar, partition,” Dutch balk, Old Saxon balko, German Balken, Old Norse bjalki “beam,” Old English bolca “plank”

Example sentences

“I saw him balk at the idea the moment it was mentioned.”

Word of the Day – Alpenglow

| Word of the Day | No Comments
Word of the Day - Alpenglow (noun) al-pen-gloh

Word of the Day – Aphorism

| Word of the Day | No Comments
Word of the Day - Aphorism (noun) a-for-izm

Word of the Day – Miser

| Word of the Day | No Comments
Word of the Day - Miser (noun) My-zur

Word of the Day – Xhiro

| Word of the Day | No Comments
Word of the Day - Xhiro (noun) (Albanian) jee-ro

Funding opens access to landmark collection of LGBTQ+ literature at Senate House Library

| News | No Comments
A press release from the University of London reveals that a grant of nearly £250,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund will open access to an expansive collection of LGBTQ+…

Word of the Day – Amore

| Word of the Day | No Comments
Word of the Day - Amore (noun)(Italian) a-mo-ray

Word of the Day – Tarantella

| Word of the Day | No Comments
Word of the Day - Tarantella (noun) ta-ran-tel-a

Word of the Day – Betwixt

| Word of the Day | No Comments
Word of the Day - Betwixt (preposition) be-twikst

Word of the Day – Moschate

| Word of the Day | No Comments
Word of the Day - Moschate (adj) mos-kayt