bark
A2Neutral, used across all registers from informal to formal depending on the sense.
Definition
Meaning
The short, loud sound made by a dog or similar animal.
To speak sharply or angrily; the tough outer covering of a tree; a specific type of sailing ship.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
A highly polysemous word with distinct noun and verb meanings. The 'dog sound' and 'tree covering' meanings are unrelated etymologically. The 'ship' meaning is historical.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Minimal. The pronunciation of the 'r' differs as per standard regional patterns. Vocabulary is identical for core meanings.
Connotations
Identical. 'To bark up the wrong tree' is common in both varieties.
Frequency
Both core meanings are equally frequent in both dialects.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[SUBJ] bark[SUBJ] bark at [OBJ][SUBJ] bark [UTTERANCE] (e.g., 'Get out!')Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “bark up the wrong tree”
- “bark worse than one's bite”
- “his/her bark is worse than his/her bite”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Metaphorical: 'The manager's bark is usually followed by constructive support.'
Academic
Botany/Zoology: 'The study examined the chemical composition of oak bark.' / 'The recorded barks were analysed for frequency.'
Everyday
Primarily used for dogs and trees.
Technical
Arboriculture/Botany (tree covering), Veterinary/Animal Behavior (dog sound).
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The neighbour's dog barks at every passing lorry.
- He'll bark at you if you're late again.
- The sergeant barked a command to the recruits.
American English
- The neighbor's dog barks at every passing truck.
- He'll bark at you if you're late again.
- The drill sergeant barked an order to the platoon.
adverb
British English
- He spoke barkily, startling the children. (extremely rare/poetic)
American English
- 'Get over here!' he said barkily. (extremely rare/poetic)
adjective
British English
- The old oak had a wonderfully barky texture. (rare, informal)
- He has a barky cough that sounds quite harsh.
American English
- The old oak had a wonderfully barky texture. (rare, informal)
- He has a barky cough that sounds awful.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- My dog barks at the postman.
- The tree has thick brown bark.
- Please don't bark at me, I can hear you.
- The seal's bark echoed across the harbour.
- We stripped the bark from the birch tree carefully.
- His constant barking at the staff creates a tense atmosphere.
- The officer barked out instructions as the fire spread.
- Traditional medicine sometimes uses willow bark for pain relief.
- You're barking up the wrong tree if you think I took your keys.
- Her laughter was a short, derisive bark.
- The politician's rhetoric was all bark and no substantive policy bite.
- The archaeologist identified the wood from the characteristic pattern of its fossilised bark.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
A BARKing dog is loud like a gun going off in the dark ('b-ARK!'). Tree BARK is rough like a park bench.
Conceptual Metaphor
ANGRY/AGGRESSIVE SPEECH IS ANIMAL VOCALIZATION (He barked orders). PROTECTION/OUTER LAYER IS SKIN (The tree's bark, the bark of a spaceship).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Confusion with 'bark' (лай) and 'bark' (кора), which are different words in Russian.
- Literal translation of 'bark up the wrong tree' (лаять не на то дерево) is nonsensical.
- Avoid using 'bark' for human cough sounds; Russian may use 'лаять' metaphorically more freely.
Common Mistakes
- Incorrect: *'The dog barked to the cat.' Correct: 'The dog barked at the cat.'
- Incorrect: *'She has a loud bark.' (for a person's voice, this is idiomatic but often misapplied). Correct: 'She has a barky voice.' or 'She barks when she speaks.'
Practice
Quiz
In the idiom 'his bark is worse than his bite', what does 'bark' metaphorically represent?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No, they are complete homonyms from different historical roots. 'Dog sound' comes from Old English 'beorcan', while 'tree covering' comes from Old Norse 'bǫrkr'.
Yes, foxes, seals, and some other animals are described as barking. It can also describe a short, loud human cough or laugh.
It can be both. For the dog sound, it's countable (e.g., 'three loud barks'). For tree covering, it's usually uncountable (e.g., 'pieces of bark'), but can be countable when referring to types (e.g., 'cinnamon and willow barks').
Typically 'at' when indicating a target (bark at the cat). If the thing said is the direct object, no preposition is used (bark an order).