as in to refuse
to show unwillingness to accept, do, engage in, or agree to
she balked at lending him any more money
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for balk (at)
Verb
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By refusing to specify details of the case, the government keeps the possibility alive of changing their reasoning or their claims to have the same effect for different reasons—just as the mob changes its reasoning for killing Cinna.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
23 Oct. 2025 -
If Taiwan refuses to capitulate in a quarantine or blockade, an invasion could follow.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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At that meeting, Buchanan's reappointment to a full five-year term on the housing authority's board was rejected in a 6-2 decision, with two city directors absent.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
23 Oct. 2025
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Scholtes rejected a second-degree murder plea deal in March 2025 that would have resulted in a sentence of 10 to 25 years, according to previous reporting by The Arizona Republic.—
Jose R. Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Contract options exercised for 4 The club exercised contract options on Stephen Afrifa, Zorhan Bassong, Jansen Miller and John Pulskamp, while declining options for Tim Leibold, Nemanja Radoja, Ryan Schewe, Shelton and Mason Toye.—
Daniel Sperry,
Kansas City Star,
23 Oct. 2025
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However, her cousin the followed up, and the OP wrote back declining the invite.—
Charna Flam,
PEOPLE,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Oilers passed up countless quality chances at five-on-five and were seldom around the blue paint against the Devils.—
Daniel Nugent-Bowman,
New York Times,
19 Oct. 2025
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Fields is under contract for one more season, but the team could save $10 million if he’s designated as a post-June 1 cut next offseason, which could make the prospect of drafting a potential franchise QB on a rookie deal for the next four seasons too enticing to pass up.—
Michael Gallagher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Balk (at).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/balk%20%28at%29. Accessed 26 Oct. 2025.
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