bark

BARK/bɑɹk/BAHK/bɑːk/

Pluralbarks

Verbbarks, barking, barked

17 meanings of bark

Practice

1
tree coveringnouncountable or uncountable
The tough outer covering of the trunk and branches of a tree.
Cinnamon comes from the dried bark of a tropical tree.
Beetles burrow beneath the bark to lay their eggs.
UsageUsually with no a: tree bark, under the bark, a piece or strip of bark.
2
make dog noisesverbintransitive
To make a short, loud, explosive sound with the voice, as a dog or fox does.
Dogs bark whenever a stranger approaches the gate.
The fox barked twice and disappeared into the woods.
UsageA dog barks at someone. Idiom: bark up the wrong tree, to follow a false lead or try the wrong approach.
Similaryap, yelp, woof, bay
3
animal's crynouncountable
The short, loud, explosive sound made by a dog, a fox, or certain other animals.
A single sharp bark echoed across the empty parking lot.
The seal's barks could be heard from the far end of the beach.
UsageIdiom: his bark is worse than his bite, he sounds fiercer than he really is.
Similarwoof, yap, yelp
4
verbtransitive
To speak or shout something sharply, curtly, or insistently.
The manager barked instructions across the busy kitchen.
Officers bark orders that must be obeyed instantly.
UsageUsually bark orders or bark commands, often at someone; also bark out an order.
Similarsnap, shout, bellow, yell
Note
It can tag a line of dialogue too, as in Salman Rushdie's Fury (2001): "'What I'm looking for,' he barked."
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
Salman Rushdie wrote Fury, first published in 2001. en.wikipedia.org
The quoted words occur in Fury; the character speaking is Professor Malik Solanka. penguinrandomhousehighereducation.com
5
flat candynouncountable or uncountable
Hard candy made in flat sheets, often from chocolate, peanut butter, toffee, or peppermint.
Every December she makes trays of peppermint bark to give away.
The bark snapped cleanly into jagged pieces, revealing layers of chocolate and mint.
UsageUsually named by flavor: peppermint bark, chocolate bark.
6
nounfigurativelycountable
A sudden, sharp, loud utterance from a person.
The sergeant's bark sent the recruits scrambling for cover.
A bark of laughter escaped him before he could stop it.
UsageOften a bark of laughter.
Similarshout, yell, bellow, snap
7
large sailing shipnouncountable
A sailing vessel with three or more masts, the forward masts square-rigged and the rearmost mast (the mizzen) rigged fore-and-aft like a schooner.
The three-masted bark carried timber across the Atlantic for decades.
From the dock they watched a bark glide past, its square sails full of wind.
UsageAlso spelled barque.
Similarbarque
Note
A rigger's distinction: on a bark every mast but the aftermost carries square sails, while the mizzen is rigged fore-and-aft. That one mast separates it from a full-rigged ship, which is square-rigged on every mast. Mark Kurlansky's Cod (1997) describes Europeans crossing the ocean in large barks built for deck space and big holds. These were working ships, not the boat of verse in the poetic sense.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 6 facts
A bark has square sails on every mast except the aftermost, which carries fore-and-aft sails. en.wikipedia.org
A full-rigged ship is square-rigged on every mast. en.wikipedia.org
Mark Kurlansky wrote Cod, first published in 1997. openlibrary.org
Cod describes Europeans crossing the ocean in large barks designed for deck space and large holds. en.wiktionary.org
These barks were working ships. en.wikipedia.org
The poetic sense can denote a sailing vessel or boat of any kind; it is not restricted to small craft. en.wiktionary.org
8
quinine sourcenouncountable or uncountable
The bark of the cinchona tree, the source of quinine, also called Peruvian bark or Jesuit's bark.
Before quinine was isolated in 1820, doctors in Europe gave malaria patients powdered Peruvian bark.
Ships carried sacks of the costly bark from Peru to apothecaries in Europe.
Similarcinchona
Note
One tree's bark, valued as a drug: the dried bark of the cinchona was the historical source of quinine and related alkaloids, used against malarial fevers. Peruvian bark and Jesuit's bark are the names it was traded under. It held that place for a long time, until synthetic antimalarials displaced it.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts
Cinchona bark was historically valued as a source of quinine and related alkaloids. en.wikipedia.org
The medicinal bark was dried. en.wikipedia.org
Cinchona bark was used against malaria and was known commercially as Peruvian bark and Jesuit's bark. en.wikipedia.org
After prolonged use, cinchona-derived antimalarials were displaced by synthetic antimalarials. sciencehistory.org

Less common meanings

9
written dog soundinterjection
Used to represent the sound of a dog barking.
Bark! The shepherd dog sounded off the moment the gate creaked open.
Bark, bark! echoed through the yard as the visitor reached the porch.
Similarwoof, arf
10
meat crustnouncountable or uncountable
The flavorful crust that forms on the outside of barbecued meat seasoned with a rub.
A proper rub helps the bark develop during the long smoke.
He sliced through the crisp bark to reveal the tender meat beneath.
Similarcrust
Note
A pitmaster's word for the dense, dark crust that forms when the rub, rendered fat and the meat's surface cook together under smoke. Its texture is the point. Julie Reinhardt's She-Smoke (2009) weighs a technique that softens the meat "at some loss of crunch to the bark." A good bark is judged by that crunch as much as by its color.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts
During smoking, rendered fat mixes with the rub on the meat's surface. amazingribs.com
Julie Reinhardt wrote She-Smoke, published in 2009. hachettebookgroup.com
She-Smoke contains the quoted wording and describes a technique that softens meat while reducing the bark's crunch. en.wiktionary.org
11
verbtransitive
To strip the bark from a tree, log, or branch, sometimes in a ring around the trunk to kill the tree.
Tanners bark the felled oaks by hand before treating the hides.
Deer had barked several young apple trees in a ring around the trunk, and by spring they were dead.
Similarstrip, peel
Note
Its past participle often works as an adjective. A. M. Chisholm's A Thousand a Plate (1922) describes "freshly felled and barked trees" along a river, the work of beavers. If the whole trunk is stripped, it is barked. If only a ring is taken, it is girdled, which can kill the tree where it stands.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts
A. M. Chisholm wrote A Thousand a Plate, published in 1922. en.wikisource.org
The story describes freshly felled and barked trees along a river as evidence of beaver activity. en.wikisource.org
Removing a ring of bark around the trunk is girdling. ucanr.edu
Girdling can kill a standing tree, but some girdling wounds heal and the tree survives. ucanr.edu
12
nounliterarycountable
A boat or small sailing vessel of any kind, used chiefly in old or literary writing.
It is the star to every wandering bark
c. 1609, William Shakespeare, Sonnet 116
Similarboat, vessel, craft, ship
Note
The boat of verse: Shakespeare's Sonnet 116 calls love "the star to every wandering bark," Shelley's Revolt of Islam (1818) has the stream of life bear "our bark," and Emily Dickinson wonders whether "my bark went down at sea." It names no rig or size and suits a small craft alone on the water. In plain prose, boat or ship is the safer choice.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts
Shakespeare's Sonnet 116 describes love as the star to every wandering bark. en.wikisource.org
The first edition titled The Revolt of Islam is dated 1818. en.wikisource.org
Shelley's poem has the stream of life bear our bark. en.wikisource.org
Emily Dickinson wrote a poem wondering whether my bark went down at sea. en.wikisource.org
13
scrape skinverbtransitive
To scrape or rub the outer covering or skin off of something.
She barked her elbow squeezing through the narrow gap.
Workers can easily bark their knuckles on rough timber.
UsageUsually with a body part: bark your shin, bark your knuckles.
Similarscrape, graze, skin, scuff
Note
A football report can still say "toes were crushed, shins barked, ankles hacked."
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
A football report contains the quoted wording. theguardian.com
14
nounobsolete
An Irish person.
15
nounrare
The outer covering or casing that surrounds something.
16
verbrare
To cover or enclose something with bark, or with a covering resembling bark.
17
noun
A quick opening of the hi-hat cymbal as it is struck, followed by closing it again promptly.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of bark apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 2–4, 6, 9

From Middle English barken, from Old English beorcan ("to bark"), from Proto-West Germanic *berkan, and ultimately from a Proto-Indo-European root *bʰerg- meaning "to make a noise, growl, bark." It is related to Icelandic berkja ("to bark, bluster") and dialectal Lithuanian burgė́ti ("to growl, grumble").

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 5 facts

Bark derives from Middle English barken and Old English beorcan, meaning 'to bark'. en.wiktionary.org
Old English beorcan derives from Proto-West Germanic *berkan. en.wiktionary.org
The ancestry includes Proto-Indo-European *bʰerg-, meaning 'to make a noise, growl, bark'. en.wiktionary.org
Bark is related to Icelandic berkja, meaning 'to bark, bluster'. en.wiktionary.org
Bark is related to dialectal Lithuanian burgė́ti, meaning 'to growl, grumble'. en.wiktionary.org

Meanings 1, 5, 8, 10–11, 13

Old Norse bǫrkr ("tree bark") was taken into Old English as barc, which became Middle English bark. The Norse word comes from Proto-Germanic *barkuz, which is probably connected with *birkijǭ ("birch"). Danish bark and Icelandic börkur are akin.

Meanings 7, 12

English bark developed from Middle English barke ("boat"), borrowed from Middle French barque, whose source was Late Latin barca. One possible earlier source is Classical Latin bāris, borrowed from Ancient Greek βᾶρις ("Egyptian boat") and ultimately tracing back to an Egyptian word for a transport ship. Barge and barque are doublets of bark.