bark

1 of 5

verb (1)

ˈbärk 

barked; barking; barks

intransitive verb

1

a

: to make the characteristic short loud cry of a dog

b

: to make a noise resembling a bark

2

: to speak in a curt loud and usually angry tone : snap

3

informal : to produce a usually sharp, sudden pain

… at 36 and with his mustache turning gray and his body barking back in pain, Luis DeLeon is in spring training with the Cubs.

—Joseph A. Reaves

The shoulder is pain-free for now, but his elbow barks at him occasionally …

—Mike Lupica

transitive verb

1

: to utter in a curt loud usually angry tone

an officer barking orders

2

: to advertise by persistent outcry

barking their wares

bark

2 of 5

noun (1)

1

a

: the sound made by a barking dog

b

: a similar sound

2

: a short sharp peremptory tone of speech or utterance

bark

3 of 5

noun (2)

1

: the tough exterior covering of a woody root or stem

specifically : the tissues outside the cambium that include an inner layer especially of secondary phloem and an outer layer of periderm

2

: cinchona sense 2

3

: a candy containing chocolate and nuts that is made in a sheet and broken into pieces

bark

4 of 5

verb (2)

barked; barking; barks

transitive verb

1

: to treat with an infusion of tanbark

2

a

: to strip the bark from

b

: to rub off or abrade the skin of

barked a shin on the desk

bark

5 of 5

noun (3)

variants or barque

1

a

: a small sailing ship

b

: a sailing ship of three or more masts with the aftmost mast fore-and-aft rigged and the others square-rigged

2

: a craft propelled by sails or oars

Phrases

bark up the wrong tree

: to promote or follow a mistaken course (as in doing research)

someone's bark is worse than his/her bite

—used to say that someone known for harsh or angry speech does not actually treat others in an unfairly harsh or harmful way

Chairman Paul Millership was larger than life and shouted his orders loud and clear. But his bark was worse than his bite and he was scrupulously fair to employees who put in the effort.

—The Nottingham Evening Post

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• snap
• snarl

Verb (2)

• flay
• hull
• husk
• peel
• shell
• shuck
• skin

Noun (3)

• dinghy
• sailboat
• windjammer

Examples of bark in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

As Mahomes barked signals, Tirico noted another baseball connection: The quarterback, who is famous for throwing the football using arm angles like a shortstop, was drafted by the Detroit Tigers before committing to football. —Jody Rosen, New York Times, 2 Dec. 2023

The cops pointed shotguns at Dalton and his terrified parents and siblings, barking orders and questions. —Andy Greenberg, WIRED, 14 Nov. 2023

At each door, Viano clapped over the sounds of barking dogs to get the attention of residents. —David Feliba, Washington Post, 17 Nov. 2023

At times, Udu barked or screamed into the mic for emotional effect, the lyrics garbled in a burst of post-teenage angst. —Cameron Cook, Pitchfork, 7 Nov. 2023

One of the best features is the built-in ‘barking sensor alert’ which will send you a push notification to your smartphone when barking is detected. —Lauren Breedlove, Travel + Leisure, 26 Oct. 2023

Authorities were called to the swanky beach home along Hickory Boulevard on Monday after a maintenance worker who was taking care of the house saw a suitcase in the kitchen and heard a dog barking inside, NBC 2 reported. —Emma Colton, Fox News, 23 Sep. 2023

Two barking sea lions charge through crowd during breeding season at San Diego’s La Jolla Cove July 26, 2023 After the six-month closure in 2022, the California Coastal Commission moved to extend it year-round at its meeting in the spring. —Jeremy Childs, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2023

Todd McFarland said his dog barked for an hour because of the helicopters. —Maryclaire Dale and Marc Levy, Anchorage Daily News, 12 Sep. 2023

Noun

Layering green moss, tree bark, and matcha, Temple des Mousses echoes a tranquil spring morning at an iconic Kyoto temple’s zen garden that grows an astonishing 120 varieties of verdant moss. —Katie Chang, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023

In contrast, barks are aggressive sounds that indicate threats are present or challenge other pack members to establish and maintain dominance. —Hampton Bourne, Field & Stream, 22 Nov. 2023

Most of the damage is minor but two trees were girdled, with bark shredded all the way around the trunk. —Kevin Ambrose, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023

With assistance from Freya, she’s covered every inch of the walls — painted in earthy browns inspired by the hues of bark and leaves — in decorative potato prints. —Aimee Farrell Emli Bendixen, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2023

Cartier hoped the fish would make his fortune and needed the flowers, or at least the tree bark, to save his life. —Nina Caplan, Travel + Leisure, 28 Oct. 2023

This skin-softening cleanser is spiked with a slew of complexion-enhancing ingredients like willow bark and pink clay to tackle breakouts, oily skin, and dead skin build-up. —Jennifer Hussein, Allure, 21 Nov. 2023

Instead, the minor damage is probably the work of a single hungry beaver feeding on the bark. —Kevin Ambrose, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023

And Novavax has said that a special ingredient derived from the bark of Chilean soapbark trees enhances the vaccine’s power. —Amy Maxmen | Kff Health News, NBC News, 19 Nov. 2023

See More

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English berken, from Old English beorcan; akin to Old Norse berkja to bark, Lithuanian burgėti to growl

Noun (2)

Middle English, from Old Norse bark-, bǫrkr; akin to Middle Dutch & Middle Low German borke bark

Noun (3)

Middle English, from Middle French barque, from Old Occitan barca, from Late Latin

First Known Use

Verb (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing bark

• bark beetle
• bark up the wrong tree
• elm bark beetle
• smaller European elm bark beetle
• someone's bark is worse than his/her bite

• bark beetle
• bark up the wrong tree
• elm bark beetle
• smaller European elm bark beetle
• someone's bark is worse than his/her bite

Kids Definition

bark

1 of 5 verb

ˈbärk 

1

: to make the short loud cry of a dog or a similar noise

2

: to shout or speak sharply

bark out an order

bark

2 of 5 noun

: the sound made by a barking dog

bark

3 of 5 noun

: the tough covering of a woody root or stem

bark

4 of 5 verb

1

: to strip the bark from

2

: to rub or scrape the skin of

barked her knee

bark

5 of 5 noun

variants or barque

1

: a small sailing ship

2

: a three-masted ship with the first two masts square-rigged and the last fore-and-aft rigged

Etymology

Verb

Old English beorcan "to bark"

Noun

Middle English bark "tree covering," of Scandinavian origin

Noun

Middle English bark "a small ship," from early French barque (same meaning)

Medical Definition

bark

noun

ˈbärk 

1

: the tough exterior covering of a woody root or stem

2

: cinchona sense 3