as in ships
a boat equipped with one or more sails
took a small bark out on the lake
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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
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Recent Examples of barks
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
Two holiday barks sold at Aldi have been recalled nationwide.
—Jenna Anderson, Health, 1 Dec. 2025
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
In Network, Sidney Lumet cast Duvall as Frank Hackett, a broadcast television executive who barks about his lack of principles loudly and often.
—Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026
Noun
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
Two holiday barks sold at Aldi have been recalled nationwide.
—Jenna Anderson, Health, 1 Dec. 2025
Verb
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
In Network, Sidney Lumet cast Duvall as Frank Hackett, a broadcast television executive who barks about his lack of principles loudly and often.
—Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for barks
Noun
-
On the first day of the war alone, electronic interference disrupted the navigation systems of more than 1,100 commercial ships in UAE, Qatari, Omani and Iranian waters, according to a Windward report cited by Inside GNSS.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
13 May 2026
-
Capacity remains the key barrier, with Habben Jansen suggesting that there are not enough ships in its fleet to facilitate another network overhaul just yet.—
Glenn Taylor,
Footwear News,
13 May 2026
Verb
-
Blending sharp humor, irreverent games and unexpected twists, each episode peels back the polished layers of today’s most talked about talent to reveal the human behind the fame… and no topic is off-limits.—
Todd Spangler,
Variety,
13 May 2026
-
Each new burst of observation, each refined model, peels back another layer, showing us just how dynamic and surprising the life of a star can be.—
Paul Sutter,
Space.com,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
There have been sometimes somebody shouts in protests.—
Dana Taylor,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
-
This grand procession of Edmonia’s work is an act of reclamation—a gathering in her name that shouts through stone and into the eons.—
Tyehimba Jess,
ARTnews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Knives are clutched, teeth are clenched, and a desperate Russian ex-pat yells loud enough for their long-dead ancestors to hear all the way back in the motherland.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
13 May 2026
-
Soon, his trajectory straightened, and yells filled the air.—
Jessica Camille Aguirre,
New Yorker,
2 May 2026
Noun
-
What followed included jury resignations, protests, Pussy Riot, paparazzi, and enough mega-yachts to redefine the Venice skyline.—
Erica Firpo,
Forbes.com,
14 May 2026
-
Remembering Ted Turner, an American original Ted Turner, the brash, visionary entrepreneur who founded CNN, transformed cable television, raced yachts in the America's Cup, and became one of America's leading conservationists, died May 6 at 87.—
David Morgan,
CBS News,
8 May 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
-
In 1996, there were 22 frigates, 17 submarines, 15 destroyers, and 3 aircraft carriers.—
Michael Saunders,
FOXNews.com,
16 May 2026
-
There are other reasons for sending the frigates, however.—
Eliot A. Cohen,
The Atlantic,
11 May 2026
Verb
-
Griffith growls Griffith could be in position to win its first Greater South Shore Conference title since 2018.—
Michael Osipoff,
Chicago Tribune,
1 May 2026
-
Foxes use a variety of calls, including barks, howls, yaps, and growls.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Barks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barks. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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