lark

1 of 3

noun (1)

: any of a family (Alaudidae) of chiefly Old World ground-dwelling songbirds that are usually brownish in color
especially : skylark compare meadowlark

lark

2 of 3

noun (2)

: a source of or quest for amusement or adventure
thought life was a lark
entered the race on a lark

lark

3 of 3

verb

larked; larking; larks

intransitive verb

: to engage in harmless fun or mischief
often used with about
larker noun

Examples of lark in a Sentence

Verb we would rather lark about in the summer than get part-time jobs
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
But if this were all just a lark, the whole thing might collapse. Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 31 May 2023 For California’s governor, who loves gamboling on a national stage, the whole evening was a lark. Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2023 Furthermore, young adults who are neither larks nor owls show less variability in performance over the day. Cindi May, Discover Magazine, 10 Nov. 2023 For the past few years, Guy Ritchie and his filmmaking collaborators have alternated between lightweight larks and hefty tales of masculinity. Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2023 Musicians have costumed themselves into robots for a long time—first as a sci-fi lark, with the vocoder in the 1970s, and then for all sorts of expressive chaos, with Auto-Tune in the 21st century. Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 10 Nov. 2023 The opening stanza reads: In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. Stephanie Petit, Peoplemag, 9 Nov. 2023 Bass arrived in Lake Powell in 1982, courtesy of a hatchery manager who, on a lark, dumped 500 spare smallmouth into the reservoir. WIRED, 4 Nov. 2023 In recent years, research has looked at genetic data from sources like 23andMe and the UK Biobank and found that as many as 351 gene variants—permanent changes in DNA sequences—might be driving whether a person is a night owl or a morning lark. Sarah Wells, Popular Mechanics, 28 Aug. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lark.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English laveroc, laverke, from Old English lāwerce; akin to Old High German lērihha lark

Verb and Noun (2)

probably alteration of lake to frolic

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

circa 1811, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1813, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lark was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near lark

Cite this Entry

“Lark.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lark. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

lark

1 of 2 noun
: any of numerous Old World singing birds that are usually brownish in color and live on the ground
especially : skylark entry 1 compare meadowlark

lark

2 of 2 noun
: something done for fun or adventure
lark verb

More from Merriam-Webster on lark

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