stalked

[stawkt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR stalked ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

having a stalk or stem.

Origin of stalked

First recorded in 1725–35; stalk¹ + -ed³

stalk

[stawk]

verb (used without object)

to pursue or approach prey, quarry, etc., stealthily.

to walk with measured, stiff, or haughty strides: He was so angry he stalked away without saying goodbye.

to proceed in a steady, deliberate, or sinister manner: Famine stalked through the nation.

Obsolete. to walk or go stealthily along.

verb (used with object)

to pursue (game, a person, etc.) stealthily.

to proceed through (an area) in search of prey or quarry: to stalk the woods for game.

to proceed or spread through in a steady or sinister manner: Disease stalked the land.

noun

an act or course of stalking quarry, prey, or the like: We shot the mountain goat after a five-hour stalk.

a slow, stiff stride or gait.

Origin of stalk

1250–1300; Middle English stalken (v.), representing the base of Old English bestealcian to move stealthily, stealcung stalking (gerund); akin to steal

Related formsstalk·a·ble, adjectivestalk·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for stalked

pursue, hunt, haunt, stride, ambush, chase, pace, track, drive, trail, tail, shadow, approach

Examples from the Web for stalked

Contemporary Examples of stalked

“I stalked her,” Lavie says matter-of-factly when asked how she and Ivgy first met.
‘Zero Motivation’: the Funny Side of the IDF
Melissa Leon
December 8, 2014
It is set during the Irish Civil War, when the IRA stalked the Anglo-Irish, who responded with a mixture of fear and indignation.
Book Bag: The Best Imaginary Castles
Johanna Lane
June 10, 2014
When it comes to Facebook, then, it seems that the stalkers are at risk of becoming the stalked.
Why Facebook’s Search Could be Huge
CNBC
July 9, 2013
Harold stalks Rosemary, as he presumes Kim was stalked by her assailant.
The Canadian Faulkner
Tom LeClair
June 24, 2013
There was also evidence that he stalked Giffords before shooting her.
Colorado Shooter: Insane or Just Plain Evil?
Eliza Shapiro, Christine Pelisek
July 25, 2012

Historical Examples of stalked

And, hanging it over his umbrella, he stalked moodily onward.
Punchinello, Vol. 1. No. 20, August 13, 1870
Various
In all their magnificence they stalked abroad, lords of the veldt.
The Leopard Woman
Stewart Edward White
With this he stalked off, and I could not run after him to bash his head, because what he said was perfectly true.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
And stalked on, fearing, I suppose, every minute for his social chastity.
American Notes
Rudyard Kipling
Muza made no reply, as he stalked slowly through the chapel.
Leila, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton

British Dictionary definitions for stalked

stalk

noun

the main stem of a herbaceous plant

any of various subsidiary plant stems, such as a leafstalk (petiole) or flower stalk (peduncle)

a slender supporting structure in animals such as crinoids and certain protozoans, coelenterates, and barnacles

any long slender supporting shaft or column

Derived Formsstalked, adjectivestalkless, adjectivestalklike, adjective

Word Origin for stalk

C14: probably a diminutive formed from Old English stalu upright piece of wood; related to Old Frisian staal handle

stalk

verb

to follow or approach (game, prey, etc) stealthily and quietly

to pursue persistently and, sometimes, attack (a person with whom one is obsessed, often a celebrity)

to spread over (a place) in a menacing or grim mannerfever stalked the camp

(intr) to walk in a haughty, stiff, or threatening wayhe stalked out in disgust

to search or draw (a piece of land) for prey

noun

the act of stalking

a stiff or threatening stride

Derived Formsstalker, noun

Word Origin for stalk

Old English bestealcian to walk stealthily; related to Middle Low German stolkeren, Danish stalke

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for stalked

stalk

"stem of a plant," early 14c., probably a diminutive (with -k suffix) of stale "one of the uprights of a ladder, handle, stalk," from Old English stalu "wooden part" (as of a harp), from Proto-Germanic *stalo; related to Old English steala "stalk, support," and steall "place" (see stall (n.1)).

stalk

v.1

"pursue stealthily," Old English -stealcian, as in bestealcian "to steal along," from Proto-Germanic *stalkojanan, probably from a frequentative of the root of steal (cf. hark from hear, talk from tell). Or it may be from a sense of stalk (v.1), influenced by stalk (n.). Meaning "harass obsessively" first recorded 1991. Related: Stalked; stalking.

A stalking-horse was literally a horse trained to allow a fowler to conceal himself behind it to get within range of the game; figurative sense of "person who participates in a proceeding to disguise its real purpose" is recorded from 1610s.

stalk

v.2

"walk haughtily" (opposite meaning of stalk (v.1)) is 1520s, perhaps from stalk (n.) with a notion of "long, awkward strides," or from Old English stealcung "a stalking," related to stealc "steep, lofty."

stalked in Medicine

stalk

[stôk]

n.

A slender or elongated support or structure, as one that connects or supports an organ.

stalked in Science

stalk

[stôk]

The main stem of a plant.

A slender structure that supports a plant part, such as a flower or leaf.

A slender supporting structure in certain other organisms, such as the reproductive structure in plasmodial slime molds or the part of a mushroom below the cap.

A slender supporting or connecting part of an animal, such as the eyestalk of a lobster.