ark

\ ˈärk

How to pronounce ark (audio)

\

Definition of ark

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : a boat or ship held to resemble that in which Noah and his family were preserved from the Flood

b : something that affords protection and safety

2a : the sacred chest representing to the Hebrews the presence of God among them

b : a repository traditionally in or against the wall of a synagogue for the scrolls of the Torah

Ark

Definition of Ark (Entry 2 of 2)

Arkansas

Did You Know? Example Sentences Learn More about ark

Keep scrolling for more

Did You Know?

A boat or ship held to resemble the one in which Noah and his family were preserved from the Flood is known as an ark. From this meaning comes the figurative meaning of ark as something that affords protection or safety. Ark is derived from the Latin word arca, meaning “chest,” which is akin to the Latin verb arcēre, meaning “to hold off or defend.” These Latin roots also gave us the use of ark to refer to the sacred chest representing to the Hebrews the presence of God among them and also to a repository that traditionally is in, or against, the wall of a synagogue for the scrolls of the Jewish Torah.

Examples of ark in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Sales of survival kits soared, and there were reports that a man in China built a modern-day Noah's ark. — John Blake, CNN, "Coronavirus is bringing a plague of dangerous doomsday predictions," 22 Mar. 2020 Nothing here is a cliche, especially the ark aerie. — oregonlive, "Ark treehouse, Airstream and ADUs: Portland architect designs compact, comfy homes on his Cully property," 25 Apr. 2020 Inside are the custom items: Crimson Tide shofroth, Crimson Tide arks of the covenant, Crimson Tide menorahs and mezuzahs. — Zach Helfand, The New Yorker, "Jeff Sessions’s Opponent, Tommy Tuberville, Takes a Beating in Israel," 9 Mar. 2020 The founder of the ark is Ken Ham, an Australian creationist who is the CEO of Answers in Genesis. — Billy Kobin, The Courier-Journal, "'We Believe in Dinosaurs': Kentucky Ark Encounter documentary offers flood of takeaways," 17 Feb. 2020 It is celebrated by taking all the Torah scrolls out of the ark in a synagogue as people spend the evening dancing, singing and rejoicing. — Sergio Carmona, sun-sentinel.com, "Simchat Torah to be celebrated at South Florida synagogues," 11 Oct. 2019 The ark of history But the march to adaptation is not an unalloyed good. — The Economist, "Humanity will find ways to adapt to climate change," 19 Sep. 2019 According to legend, Noah loaded two of every animal onto a 150-meter long ark to save them from apocalyptic flooding. — Fox News, "Noah’s Ark ‘buried in Turkish mountains’ as experts say 3D scans will prove Biblical ship’s existence," 22 Nov. 2019 Farther north is a row of private arks; upscale houseboats all in a row. — Carl Nolte, SFChronicle.com, "The Bay Area is showing off its pink again, and boy is it glorious," 22 Feb. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ark.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about ark

Dictionary Entries near ark

Arizona white oak

Statistics for ark

Last Updated

29 May 2020

Cite this Entry

“Ark.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ark. Accessed 3 Jul. 2020.

Keep scrolling for more

Keep scrolling for more

WORD OF THE DAY

stentorian

See Definitions and Examples »

Test Your Vocabulary

A More Exception(al) Quiz

Which of the following words is not a synonym for ‘a young person’?

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.