as in refused
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 balked (at)
Verb
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In the process, the Bulls refused to shut down players such as center Jalen Smith, who finally was shut down for the season this week after reaggravating a calf injury once again in Wednesday’s game.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2026 -
The woman refused any more information and was placed in the women’s ward.—
Kevin Foster,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Democrats are pushing for additional restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which Thune and Republicans have rejected so far.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2026
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About 2% of authors were caught, and their papers rejected, Nature reported.—
Tom Chivers,
semafor.com,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
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All of the candidates would be newcomers to the board, since incumbents Denise Fears and Blake Roberson declined to run.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
28 Mar. 2026
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Uber declined to comment on its latest entry into the autonomous vehicle market.—
Michael Butler,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Balked (at).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/balked%20%28at%29. Accessed 29 Mar. 2026.
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