walk

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verb

ˈwȯk

walked; walking; walks

intransitive verb

: to move along on foot : advance by steps

: to come or go easily or readily

: to go at a walk

: to go on foot for exercise or pleasure

baseball : to advance to first base by taking four pitches that are balls (see ball entry 1 sense 4a) : to go to first base as a result of a base on balls

: to avoid criminal prosecution or conviction

walked on a technicality

: walk out

walked over problems with management

: to pursue a course of action or way of life : conduct oneself : behave

walk warily

: to be or act in association : continue in union

the British and American peoples will … walk together side by side … in peace

Sir Winston Churchill

of an astronaut : to move about in space outside a spacecraft

of an inanimate object

: to move in a manner that is suggestive of walking

: to stand with an appearance suggestive of strides

pylons walking across the valley

of a spirit : to move about in visible form : appear

of a ship : to make headway

obsolete : roam, wander

transitive verb

: to cause (an animal) to go at a walk : take for a walk

walking a dog

b(1)

: to cause to move by walking

walked her bicycle up the hill

(2)

: to haul (something, such as an anchor) by walking round the capstan

: to accompany on foot : walk with

walked her home

: to compel to walk (as by a command)

: to bring to a specified condition by walking

walked us off our feet

: to follow on foot for the purpose of measuring, surveying, or inspecting

walk a boundary

: to move (an object) in a manner suggestive of walking

: to pass on foot or as if on foot through, along, over, or upon : traverse, perambulate

walk the streets

walk a tightrope

: to perform or accomplish by going on foot

walk guard

baseball : to cause (a batter) to advance to first base by pitching four balls : to give a base on balls to

: to perform (a dance) at a walking pace

walk a quadrille

walk

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noun

plural walks

: an act or instance of going on foot especially for exercise or pleasure

go for a walk

took a long walk around the neighborhood

see also take a walk

: space walk

: a place designed for walking:

a(1)

: a path specially arranged or paved for walking

(2)

: sidewalk

: a public avenue for promenading : promenade

: a railed platform above the roof of a dwelling house

: ropewalk

: distance to be walked

a quarter mile walk from here

: an accustomed place of walking : haunt

: a place or area of land in which animals feed and exercise with minimal restraint

baseball : an advance to first base awarded to a baseball player who during a turn at bat takes four pitches that are balls (see ball entry 1 sense 4a) : base on balls

: characteristic manner of walking

his walk is just like his father's

British : a ceremonial procession

: a low rate of speed

the shortage of raw materials slowed production to a walk

: the gait of a biped in which the feet are lifted alternately with one foot not clear of the ground before the other touches

: the gait of a quadruped in which there are always at least two feet on the ground

specifically : a 4-beat gait of a horse in which the feet strike the ground in the sequence near hind, near fore, off hind, off fore

: a route regularly traversed by a person in the performance of a particular activity (such as patrolling, begging, or vending)

: social or economic status

all walks of life

b(1)

: range or sphere of action : field, province

(2)

: vocation

: manner of living : conduct, behavior

: an easy victory

won in a walk

Phrases

walk away from

: to give up or leave behind willingly : abandon

: to survive (an accident) with little or no injury

: to outrun or get the better of without difficulty

walk off with

: to steal and take away

: to take over unexpectedly from someone else : steal sense 1d

walked off with the show

: to win or gain especially by outdoing one's competitors without difficulty

walk on

: to take advantage of : abuse

walk on eggshells or walk on eggs

: to exercise extreme caution

walk over

: to treat contemptuously

walk the plank

: to walk under compulsion over the side of a ship into the sea

: to resign an office or position under compulsion

walk through

: to go through (a theatrical role, a familiar activity, etc.) perfunctorily (as in an early stage of rehearsal)

: to guide (someone, such as a novice) through an unfamiliar or complex procedure step-by-step

: to deal with or carry out perfunctorily

walk in the park

: an easy or pleasurable experience

Example Sentences

Verb Is your grandson walking yet? He walks home from school every day. It's not far; you can walk there in five minutes. It was a while after the accident before she could walk again. He walked away without saying goodbye! She turned and walked away from him. The driver walked away from the accident unharmed. They walk around the neighborhood every morning for exercise. We walked around the city all day seeing the sights. He walked to the store. Noun The cliff walk along the ocean is very popular. Many exotic plants can be found along the walk. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Residents can visit California’s MyTurn platform to find a walk-in clinic or to book an appointment starting Thursday.

Luke Money, Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2022 The Bruins took care of business against Colorado on the road last week but had to rely on a walk-off field goal to beat South Alabama at home in Week 3.

Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 27 Sep. 2022 And, above all, despite Missouri running back Nathaniel Peat coming within mere inches of sending Auburn to rock bottom on a would-be walk-off touchdown.

Tom Green | Tgreen@al.com, al, 25 Sep. 2022 While the pair did not walk the red carpet together, his gesture of support was quickly picked up on by fans.

Sophie Dodd, Peoplemag, 20 Sep. 2022 Royal family members who did not walk in the procession will also join in.

Patrick Smith, NBC News, 19 Sep. 2022 Click to examine or pick up objects (so long as Threepwood can walk up to them).

Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, 19 Sep. 2022 The right-hander struck out seven and did not walk a batter in his third big-league appearance.

Andrew Seligman, Chicago Tribune, 17 Sep. 2022 Civale gave up a pair of home runs, but did not walk a batter.

Joe Noga, cleveland, 16 Sep. 2022

Noun

Bella Hadid gives high-fashion bride vibes during her walk in the Versace show at Milan Fashion Week in Italy on Sept. 23.

People Staff, Peoplemag, 28 Sep. 2022 Earlier this year, it was announced that the Milwaukee Bucks, Power forward, and WhatsApp were in partnership at the NBA All-Star game as Antetokounmpo wore a custom hoodie during his tunnel walk.

Kerane Marcellus, Essence, 23 Sep. 2022 The model also reflected on her walk, saying she was given a lesson prior to the runway show.

Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 23 Sep. 2022 Walking for several hours, even with breaks, made my feet sweaty and swollen inside waterproof hiking shoes on our Manhattan walk.

Colleen Newvine, USA TODAY, 18 Sep. 2022 The two faced nothing like it on their walk to Parker, nor have many others from the school’s student diaspora.

Scott Wilson, Washington Post, 18 Sep. 2022 Then the model and activists practices her walk and gives us some vital tips: Walk straight down.

André-naquian Wheeler, Vogue, 16 Sep. 2022 Start your walk at the corner of Alamitos and Anaheim and head east (check the map), where gorgeous murals immediately satisfy.

Matt Pawlik, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2022 In short, the leadership team made sure their walk matched their talk in three key ways.

Anna Oakes, Quartz, 8 Sep. 2022 See More

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

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English walken "to roll, toss about (of the sea, waves), wander, journey, go, go on foot, stroll, move about on earth (of a dead person's spirit), be in motion, circulate, be present, live," going back to Old English wealcan (strong verb) and wealcian (weak verb) "to toss about, work with the hands, turn over (in the mind), (of waves or the sea) to roll, surge," going back to Germanic *walkan- (whence also Middle Dutch walken "to knead, full [cloth]," Old High German giwalchen "fulled, thickened," as weak verbs Old Icelandic válka "to roll, stamp," velkja "to toss about"), of uncertain origin

Note: The Middle English verb experienced a remarkable degree of semantic diversification not paralleled in other Germanic languages, taking it far from its Old English sources, and leading to the usual modern meaning "to go by foot"; see detailed discussion of forms and meanings in Oxford English Dictionary, third edition. — The Germanic verb *walkan- has been compared with Sanskrit válgati "(s/he) leaps, bounds, (it) surges," and, more remotely, Latvian val͂gs "rope." However, as pointed out by G. Kroonen (Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Brill, 2013), there is a parallel verb *walgōn- evident in Middle Dutch walghen (in mi walghet "I feel nauseous"), Middle Low German walgen "to wrestle, strive," Old High German walgōn "to roll." If this etymon goes back to Indo-European *u̯olg^h-, it cannot be related to the Sanskrit verb. Both *walkan- and *walgōn- have been seen as representing root extensions of Indo-European *u̯el- "roll"; see welter entry 1.