barks 1 of 3

plural of bark

barks

2 of 3

verb (1)

present tense third-person singular of bark
as in peels
to remove the natural covering of barking a tree will probably kill it

Synonyms & Similar Words

barks

3 of 3

verb (2)

present tense third-person singular of bark
as in shouts
to speak sharply or irritably the new supervisor found that speaking to people with a civil tongue got better results than barking at them

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 barks
Noun
Incense usually comes in either cone or stick form and is composed of fragrant material — usually resins, seeds, barks and flowers — that’s bound together using a combustible material. Bestreviews, Mercury News, 17 June 2026 Caspar David Friedrich has sketchbooks of particular branches, twigs, barks of different trees. Literary Hub, 12 May 2026 Foxes use a variety of calls, including barks, howls, yaps, and growls. Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 16 Apr. 2026 And while humans can often discern animal distress calls or differentiate dog barks, many animal noises may seem inconsequential to the untrained human ear. Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 19 Mar. 2026 One hums with high-speed drills and anxiety; the other echoes with joyful barks and tail wags. Henry I. Miller, STAT, 28 Jan. 2026 On our third day, a late-afternoon beach landing on Sante Fe deposited us amid a colony of sleeping sea lions, their barks and coughs reverberating across the sandy shore. Julia Zaltzman, Robb Report, 26 Jan. 2026 That Doberman, the two black Labradors and a standard poodle better watch out for the two Chihuahuas, their barks say. Nicole Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 23 Dec. 2025 The duo jumped and screamed in celebration, with their dogs joining the fun with a few barks and squeals. Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 15 Dec. 2025
Verb
Mac barks at Andi as the two of them drive home. Sara Holdren, Vulture, 20 May 2026 Much like a dog that barks at every little noise and passerby, my skin is reactive. Devon Abelman, Allure, 24 Apr. 2026 Meanwhile, the same neighbor’s dog barks at all hours, day and night, and a large shoe rack sits outside her door — an eyesore and a fire code violation. Judith Martin, Mercury News, 17 Apr. 2026 The scolding was met with more meows and barks. Clara McMichael, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2026 The pup barks excitedly before the door swings open and Koch drops to her knees to receive kisses and greetings. Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 14 Apr. 2026 Sadie excitedly barks before the door opens and Koch drops to her knees to receive kisses and greetings from the pup. Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 14 Apr. 2026 Heck, even our beloved pup, Dale, barks whenever a squirrel’s hiding in the networking hardware! Jed Feiman, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026 On these tracks Slayyyter uses her voice as a much blunter instrument than before, paring back the melisma and amping up the chants, barks, and outright screams. Harry Tafoya, Pitchfork, 2 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for barks
Noun
  • During the recent sailing, the Chinese MSA ships did issue radio challenges to commercial vessels heading to Taiwan, the island’s coast guard has said.
    Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 25 June 2026
  • But everyday people expressed their political outrage time and again, throwing rocks at and demolishing the houses of government officials, torching the king’s ships and forts and, eventually, marching to battle.
    Robert Parkinson, The Conversation, 24 June 2026
Verb
  • This peels the macro noise off the 10-K, leaving behind a clean, company-specific dataset that background models can actually calculate.
    Shivaram Rajgopal, Forbes.com, 23 June 2026
  • As the series peels back the secrets surrounding the coastal town, Southwick’s performance evolves from rebellious teenager to a young man forced to confront painful truths about his family and his place in a much larger story.
    Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 17 June 2026
Verb
  • Zach Bryan shouts out the crowd on the London leg of his With Heaven on Tour on June 17.
    People Staff, PEOPLE, 21 June 2026
  • Roaring and grunting, his body sleek with blood and sweat, Conan tussles and grapples with a series of opponents, dominating them all, while an audience of torch-wielding vulgarians shouts and howls at the pit’s lip.
    Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
Noun
  • No two Smart Custom yachts are alike.
    Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 26 June 2026
  • Beat the resale algorithm After searching for World Cup tickets, suddenly every ad online and on social media was trying to sell me luxury yachts, private travel experiences, and things made from Italian leather.
    Holly Carter, PEOPLE, 25 June 2026
Verb
  • Rays pitching coach Kyle Snyder yells a lot of things from the dugout during a game, usually aimed at his own players.
    Marc Topkin, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 June 2026
  • Sirianni yells to the man, who continues toward the building without a reaction.
    Michael Silver, New York Times, 16 June 2026
Noun
  • Berlin is reportedly planning to scrap a multi-billion-euro project to build the F126 frigates, in which Rheinmetall was expected to become the lead contractor.
    Elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 24 June 2026
  • French frigates used machine guns, cannons and sophisticated air-defense missiles to fend off Houthi strikes.
    ABC News, ABC News, 16 June 2026
Verb
  • Security snarls The TSA PreCheck line at terminal B in LaGuardia Airport in East Elmhurst, Queens, New York City, on March 27, 2026.
    Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 28 Mar. 2026
  • Beyond the red tape that snarls any new apartment, condominiums confront an additional hurdle.
    M. Nolan Gray, The Atlantic, 13 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • View of model sailboats displayed in the windows of homes, Monhegan Island, Maine, 1979.
    Caroline Reilly, Forbes.com, 26 June 2026
  • Though an improvement from sailboats of previous generations, VELA’s massive ship isn’t exactly what most would call lightning fast.
    Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 25 June 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Barks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barks. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.

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