hark

[hahrk]

verb (used without object)

1. to listen attentively; hearken.

verb (used with object)

1. Archaic.,  to listen to; hear.

noun

1. a hunter's shout to hounds, as to encourage them in following the scent.

verb phrase

1. hark back

   1. (of hounds) to return along the course in order to regain a lost scent.

   2. to return to a previous subject or point; revert.

      He kept harking back to his early days in vaudeville.

hark

/ hɑːk /

verb

1. (intr; usually imperative) to listen; pay attention

Other Word Forms

• unharked adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of hark¹

1175–1225; Middle English herken, earlier herkien, Old English *heorcian; cognate with Old Frisian herkia, harkia; akin to Middle Dutch harken, Middle High German, German horchen. See hearken, hear

Word History and Origins

Origin of hark¹

Old English heorcnian to _hearken ; related to Old Frisian herkia, Old High German hōrechen; see _hear

Example Sentences

The name harks back to historic preparations for winter in the northern hemisphere, where people would hunt and preserve meats.

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Like is fellow crew, his words hark back to a bygone space age, and the words of then President John F. Kennedey in 1962:

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The song's lyrics hark back to the start of a soured relationship: "I had all and then most of you / Some and now none of you / Take me back to the night we met."

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Its title appears to hark back to the singer's 2012 hit Boyfriend, featuring the line "swag, swag, swag, on you".

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The 11 songs on the album bridge storytelling with classic country and folk sounds that hark back to the ‘70s, a la songs like the Eagles’ “Wasted Time.”

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