the above transcription of balk is a detailed (narrow) transcription according to the rules of the International Phonetic Association; you can find a description of each symbol by clicking the phoneme buttons in the secction below.
balk is pronounced in one syllable
press buttons with phonetic symbols to learn how to precisely pronounce each sound of balk
press the "test" button to check how closely you can replicate the pitch of a native speaker in your pronunciation of balk
video examples of balk pronunciation
An example use of balk in a speech by a native speaker of american english:
“… back to be a balk a heavy German lager …”
meanings of balk
noun:
The area of the table lying behind the line from which the cue ball is initially shot, and from which a ball in hand must be played.
A motion used to deceive the opponent during a serve.
(sports) A deceptive motion.
The wall of earth at the edge of an excavation.
An illegal motion by the pitcher, intended to deceive a runner.
An uncultivated ridge formed in the open field system, caused by the action of ploughing.
Beam, crossbeam; squared timber; a tie beam of a house, stretching from wall to wall, especially when laid so as to form a loft, "the balks".
A hindrance or disappointment; a check.
An omission.
The rope by which fishing nets are fastened together.
The area of the table lying behind the baulk line.
A sudden and obstinate stop.
verb:
To pass over or by.
To engage in contradiction; to be in opposition.
To leave or make balks in.
To omit, miss, or overlook by chance.
To indicate to fishermen, by shouts or signals from shore, the direction taken by the shoals of herring.
To stop, check, block.
To miss intentionally; to avoid.
To refuse suddenly.
To stop short and refuse to go on.
To disappoint; to frustrate.
To leave heaped up; to heap up in piles.
name:
A surname.
balk frequency in english - C2+ level of CEFR
the word balk occurs in english on average 0.7 times per one million words; this frequency warrants it to be in the study list for C2+ level of language mastery according to CEFR, the Common European Framework of Reference.
topics balk can be related to
it is hard to perfectly classify words into specific topics since each word can have many context of its use, but our machine-learning models believe that balk can be often used in the following areas: