as in refusing
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 balking (at)
Verb
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Strickland then mocked Chimaev for refusing to fight in the parking lot.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
8 May 2026 -
Baldoni later accused a trio of other insurers of breach of contract for refusing to cover litigation costs.—
Winston Cho,
HollywoodReporter,
7 May 2026
Verb
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Washington and some other states, however, started rejecting licensure applicants or revoking nurses with diplomas from those schools even before the investigation was made public.—
Annie Martin,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 May 2026
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Some families are also rejecting the eye ointment.—
Duaa Eldeib,
CNN Money,
8 May 2026
Verb
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Bass defended her administration’s handling of homelessness, pointing to declining homelessness counts and the city’s Inside Safe program, while criticizing Raman’s record on police hiring and past votes against some encampment enforcement measures near schools and other sensitive sites.—
Teresa Liu,
Daily News,
8 May 2026
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Poverty, lack of transportation to school and mental health struggles contribute to absenteeism and declining enrollment across San Diego County.—
Jemma Stephenson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 May 2026
Verb
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Charles compared people passing up investing in Amazon to how many publishers turned down the now wildly popular Harry Potter books.—
Kevin Liptak,
CNN Money,
28 Apr. 2026
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That could mean passing up his best chance at the Stanley Cup.—
Allan Mitchell,
New York Times,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In hindsight, Julius Randle turning down a potential drive to the rim and instead lobbing a grenade to Rudy Gobert near the end of the shot clock was a harbinger of the rest of his night.—
Dane Mizutani,
Twin Cities,
9 May 2026
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Stanley Tucci is opening up about turning down opportunities to take part in food competition shows.—
Armando Tinoco,
Deadline,
7 May 2026
Verb
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Next, a gentle tip-tap rippling through major East Coast cities, as the girls collectively add to cart whatever Holmes is toting or throwing over her shoulders.—
Anna Cafolla,
Vogue,
26 Apr. 2026
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Pitchers are allowed two disengagements per plate appearance, either throwing over to first base or stepping off the rubber, or a combination of both.—
Abbey Mastracco,
Hartford Courant,
23 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Balking (at).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/balking%20%28at%29. Accessed 12 May. 2026.
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