BALKY Synonyms: 117 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the adjective 'balky' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of balky are contrary , perverse , restive , and wayward . While all these words mean "inclined to resist authority or control," balky suggests a refusing to proceed in a desired direction or course of action. // a balky witness

Q: When would 'contrary' be a good substitute for 'balky'?

While in some cases nearly identical to balky , contrary implies a temperamental unwillingness to accept orders or advice. // a contrary child

Q: In what contexts can 'perverse' take the place of 'balky'?

While the synonyms perverse and balky are close in meaning, perverse may imply wrongheaded, determined, or cranky opposition to what is reasonable or normal. // a perverse , intractable critic

Q: When is it sensible to use 'restive' instead of 'balky'?

Although the words restive and balky have much in common, restive suggests unwillingness or inability to submit to discipline or follow orders. // tired soldiers growing restive

Q: When is 'wayward' a more appropriate choice than 'balky'?

The words wayward and balky can be used in similar contexts, but wayward suggests strong-willed capriciousness and irregularity in behavior. // a school for wayward youths

balky

adjective

ˈbȯ-kē

Definition of balky

as in rebellious

given to resisting authority or another's control a balky toddler who only seemed to know the word "no" when told to do something

Synonyms & Similar Words

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How does the adjective balky contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of balky are contrary, perverse, restive, and wayward. While all these words mean "inclined to resist authority or control," balky suggests a refusing to proceed in a desired direction or course of action.

a balky witness

When would contrary be a good substitute for balky?

While in some cases nearly identical to balky, contrary implies a temperamental unwillingness to accept orders or advice.

a contrary child

In what contexts can perverse take the place of balky?

While the synonyms perverse and balky are close in meaning, perverse may imply wrongheaded, determined, or cranky opposition to what is reasonable or normal.

a perverse, intractable critic

When is it sensible to use restive instead of balky?

Although the words restive and balky have much in common, restive suggests unwillingness or inability to submit to discipline or follow orders.

tired soldiers growing restive

When is wayward a more appropriate choice than balky?

The words wayward and balky can be used in similar contexts, but wayward suggests strong-willed capriciousness and irregularity in behavior.

a school for wayward youths

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of balky Christian Yelich missed a month with a groin strain, returned to the lineup Tuesday and then didn’t play a game again until Sunday due to his balky back. — Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 May 2026 Ayo Dosunmu is playing with a balky calf. — Jon Krawczynski, New York Times, 11 May 2026 The Legislature should pass her plan to streamline the balky State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) for construction. — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 7 Apr. 2026 But asking a 30-year-old with balky legs to carry this burden is dangerous, if not foolish. — Troy Renck, Denver Post, 5 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for balky

Recent Examples of Synonyms for balky

Adjective

For seven seasons, a hodgepodge crew mixing Starfleet and the rebellious Maquis put aside their differences after they got zapped 70,000 lightyears away from Earth, deep into the uncharted Delta Quadrant.

— Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 4 July 2026
This could bring about sudden ideas, or trigger rebellious impulses and creative imagination.

— Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026

Definition of rebellious

Adjective

Under the Obama administration, an international coalition targeting the Libyan regime of Moammar Qadafi during the country’s 2011 civil war struck his fleeing convoy, leading to his capture and killing by rebel fighters.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2026
Assad was forced to flee the country after government forces collapsed in the face of a surprise offensive launched by a coalition of rebel groups, led by Sharaa's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

— David Brennan, ABC News, 7 July 2026

Definition of rebel

Adjective

For lipedema, Power Plate points to research suggesting whole-body vibration boosts lymphatic flow, which may liquefy and drain stubborn lymph fluid, relieve swelling and ease chronic pain.

— Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 14 July 2026
The grower will plant again next season, because that is what Israelis do, and the hope in that is stubborn.

— Frayda Leibtag, Time, 13 July 2026

Definition of stubborn

Adjective

Juano Hernandez, one of the finest of all American actors, plays a proudly defiant Black man falsely accused of murder.

— Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor, 15 July 2026
Her face displays the trademark unibrow and faint mustache — a gender-bending look that, scholars say, reflects Kahlo’s defiant repudiation of the classic female aesthetic.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2026

Definition of defiant

Adjective

Part of the problem is that, outside of their tenants’ pleas, landlords face neither any real pressure nor any legal requirement to install shutters and ceiling fans; even owners who want to do so are thwarted by recalcitrant co-op boards or finicky historic-preservation reviews.

— Henry Grabar, The Atlantic, 27 June 2026
The patron saint of the 2024 Democratic National Convention was Fannie Lou Hamer—recalcitrant sharecropper turned agitator and, like the Democratic presidential nominee, a black woman.

— Ta-Nehisi Coates, Vanity Fair, 15 June 2026

Definition of recalcitrant

Adjective

And only DeMichelle’s Marguerite has the necessary command to bring this obstreperous monarch to heel.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2026
And when intelligence confirms that one of their vessels is engaged in armed smuggling operations, the president need not convene an obstreperous congressional committee before acting in such a manner to defend the American people.

— Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Dec. 2025

Definition of obstreperous

Adjective

The experience of eating it is even more shocking … the electric crunch of passionfruit seeds giving way to exploding citrus vesicles, glimmering like wayward teardrop gems … and … was that a dehydrated banana?

— Cooking Editor, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026
Footage has been captured from behind the goal and most of the 20 attempts, to be kind, are wayward.

— Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 10 July 2026

Definition of wayward

Adjective

In 2018, the IRS closed the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP), ending the formal disclosure program designed primarily for taxpayers with potential criminal exposure or willful violations relating to unreported offshore holdings.

— Virginia La Torre Jeker, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
Federal law generally prohibits direct service connection for addiction classified as resulting from willful misconduct.

— Daniel Fusch, USA Today, 29 June 2026

Definition of willful

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balks (at)

balky

ball

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“Balky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/balky. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of balky

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