balking (at)

verb

present participle of balk (at)
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)
  1. refusing
  2. rejecting
  3. declining
  4. passing up
  5. turning down
  6. throwing over
Verb
  • That same day, another federal district judge in a separate case in California barred DOJ from threatening election workers with criminal prosecution for refusing to stop processing ballots or resisting other demands.
    — Dan Mangan,Kevin Breuninger, CNBC, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Tanner McKee looked like a backup all night, holding the ball, taking sacks, refusing to throw downfield and turning the ball over twice.
    — Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of refusing
Verb
  • Or maybe voters weren't rejecting the idea of a wealth tax per se.
    — Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 10 Nov. 2026
  • In a small win for the defense, Sullivan issued a separate ruling rejecting the prosecution’s request for a gag order that would bar Clancy’s lawyers from speaking with the media about the case.
    — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 10 Nov. 2026
Definition of rejecting
Verb
  • Hip-hop discourse, in recent years, has fixated on declining metrics as some arbiter of cultural failure.
    — Andre Gee, Pitchfork, 13 Nov. 2026
  • Per the formula, districts with declining enrollment should get less ECS money.
    — Theo Peck-Suzuki, Hartford Courant, 13 Nov. 2026
Definition of declining
Verb
  • Snyder well understands the importance of passing up opportunities while trophy hunting.
    — Rich LaRocco, Outdoor Life, 2 Nov. 2026
  • That means passing up moments that are far more magical to me than to Leo.
    — Jeanne Bonner, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of passing up
Verb
  • By the late 1970s, the architect Norman Jaffe was turning down nine out of ten potential clients.
    — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 3 Nov. 2026
  • After 12 years, three standalone movies and a holiday special, Amanda Seyfried appears to have no regrets turning down a Guardians of the Galaxy lead role.
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of turning down
Verb
  • In his breakout season in 2025, Maye showed that one of his quarterbacking superpowers is throwing over the middle of the field.
    — Daniel Popper, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Tatis dealt with Patrick throwing over twice, and catcher Gary Sánchez snapping off a pickoff throw.
    — Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of throwing over
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.

Browse Nearby Words

balking
balking (at)
balks
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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 14 Nov. 2026.

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