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bark
1[ bahrk ]
/ bɑrk /
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noun
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
to utter in a harsh, shouting tone: barking orders at her subordinates.
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Idioms about 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
1First recorded before 900; Middle English berken, beorken, borken, barke, Old English beorcan; akin to Old English borcian “to bark,” Old Norse berkja “to bluster, boast,” Lithuanian burgė́ti “to growl, quarrel,” Serbo-Croatian br̀gljati “to murmur”
OTHER WORDS FROM bark
barkless, adjectiveWords nearby bark
Other definitions for bark (2 of 3)
bark2
[ bahrk ]
/ bɑrk /
noun
verb (used with object)
Origin of bark
2First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Old Norse bǫrkr (genitive barkar )
OTHER WORDS FROM bark
barkless, adjectiveOther definitions for bark (3 of 3)
bark3
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
3First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English barke, from Old French barque, ultimately from Late Latin barca “small boat, barge, bark”; akin to Latin bāris, from Greek bâris “Egyptian flat-bottomed boat, raft, barge,” from Coptic barī “boat, barge”
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use bark in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for bark (1 of 3)
bark1
/ (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)
bark2
/ (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)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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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.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Other Idioms and Phrases with bark
bark
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.