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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for balk (at)
Verb
-
The Yankees’ lineup, meanwhile, didn’t put up a fight against Spencer Strider, who refused to surrender a run, walked three and struck out eight over six innings.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
19 July 2025 -
Kirton on Friday acknowledged he’d been given the training directive in 2022, but said his attorney advised him against attending or signing the form because Bloomfield leaders refused to show them the investigative report.—
Don Stacom,
Hartford Courant,
19 July 2025
Verb
-
If anyone else tries such commands, the AGI and ASI reject them summarily.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
15 July 2025
-
New York’s 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Maxwell’s appeal effort last year, finding that the deal drawn up in 2007 and approved the following year only protected Epstein and his coconspirators in South Florida.—
Molly Crane-Newman,
New York Daily News,
15 July 2025
Verb
-
Cal Fire officials declined to comment on whether either of the companies has had prior violations or enforcement actions, citing the active investigation.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
12 July 2025
-
Disney officials declined to comment on individual plans out of respect for all guests.—
Jasmine Mendez
Follow,
Los Angeles Times,
12 July 2025
Verb
-
Her bag philosophy seems to revolve around practicality, which leads me to believe the princess had a bit more to carry with her than usual…or this braided summer tote was just too good to pass up.—
Emily Tannenbaum,
Glamour,
12 July 2025
-
The Dodgers have holes around the roster to fill, too, but landing a deal for Durán, while the righty is in the middle of a career year, would be too good to pass up on.—
Zach Pressnell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 July 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Balk (at).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/balk%20%28at%29. Accessed 23 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share