as in hampering
to prevent from achieving a goal
a young man with big dreams who refused to be balked by the many challenges he faced in making them a reality
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in frustrating
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
as in thwarting
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of balking
Hershal Pandya, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025
Soliman’s legal team filed statements from all three balking at how DHS had cherry-picked their research.
—Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Sep. 2025
As age checks become more commonplace across the Internet due to regulatory pressure globally, people motivated to defend digital freedom are balking and increasingly banding together, Gerfdas said.
—Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 12 Aug. 2025
Not only are moderate Republicans balking at cuts to Medicaid, which were made larger by the Senate, but conservatives are also up in arms over the massive increase in deficit spending, also increased by the upper chamber.
—Mike Lillis, The Hill, 2 July 2025
Noun
Other comedians have pointed to the inconsistency of balking at performing in Saudi Arabia when other governments around the world also sponsor morally unjustifiable actions.
—Hershal Pandya, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025
Soliman’s legal team filed statements from all three balking at how DHS had cherry-picked their research.
—Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Sep. 2025
As age checks become more commonplace across the Internet due to regulatory pressure globally, people motivated to defend digital freedom are balking and increasingly banding together, Gerfdas said.
—Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 12 Aug. 2025
Not only are moderate Republicans balking at cuts to Medicaid, which were made larger by the Senate, but conservatives are also up in arms over the massive increase in deficit spending, also increased by the upper chamber.
—Mike Lillis, The Hill, 2 July 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for balking
Adjective
-
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa had another frustrating game with three interceptions in the one-score loss.—
Tim Crowley,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Oct. 2025
-
Sure, Riley’s first three seasons with the Trojans have been largely underwhelming — and a last-second loss to Illinois was the sort of defeat that’s become all too familiar and all too frustrating for the fan base — but USC’s coach is far too expensive to fire.—
Antonio Morales,
New York Times,
12 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Rainfall was hampering efforts to reach the villages and many roads were swept away or blocked by the landslides.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
5 Oct. 2025
-
The appointment ends a three-month mayoral vacancy that has been hampering efforts to repair the city's aging, leak-prone water system.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Wilson was seen in a spirited exchange with Jets head coach Aaron Glenn heading into halftime after the team’s baffling clock management on its final drive.—
The Athletic NFL Staff,
New York Times,
12 Oct. 2025
-
By the film’s final baffling scene, which sees Alma and Maggie reunite after a five-year time jump, the audience is left in the frustrating place of having more questions than answers.—
Mathew Rodriguez,
Them.,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
In 1914, British explorer Ernest Shackleton led an expedition to complete the first land crossing of Antarctica.—
Frederick Dreier,
Outside,
7 Oct. 2025
-
Bridge-building first emerged in ancient civilizations like Egypt, Mesopotamia, and India, where early engineers used logs and planks to create simple crossings over rivers and streams.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Kalkbrenner showed off his ability to be a paint presence, thwarting one second-half dunk attempt, and displayed some of the flashes that had his teammates and the coaching staff talking him up throughout the Hornets’ six days in the Lowcountry.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Oct. 2025
-
There had already been one major let-off with Alisson thwarting Yilmaz, who had got in behind the makeshift right-back too easily.—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
That morphed following its devastating 1980s war with Iraq into more of an effort to provide a level of deterrence as Arab nations around it purchased sophisticated American bombs, warplanes and tanks that Tehran couldn’t access due to sanctions.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
12 Oct. 2025
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But the report concludes that to make the pivot successful, Washington must invest in new logistics and infrastructure—and define whether Puerto Rico’s growing role is a matter of deterrence or the first step in a broader campaign against Venezuela.—
Amir Daftari,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Right Now Reducing and eventually stopping sugar cravings can take time.—
Jamie Johnson,
Verywell Health,
10 Oct. 2025
-
His dad raced, and Vinson followed in his father’s footsteps beginning at age 14 before eventually stopping to focus on his career as an educator, first as a teacher and coach, then eventually an administrator, principal and now a superintendent.—
Jordan Bianchi,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The comments illustrate the frustration as the four remaining controllers waited on a regional air traffic control center across the state to clear planes to enter the airspace.—
Dalia Faheid,
CNN Money,
8 Oct. 2025
-
In the film, directed by Mike Judge, Peter Gibbons (Livingston) and his coworkers, Michael Bolton (David Herman) and Samir Nagheenanajar (Ajay Naidu), enjoy the last day at their job by taking out years of frustrations on their frequently malfunctioning office printer.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
8 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Balking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/balking. Accessed 15 Oct. 2025.
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