balk
Ridge/raised strip of land.
Updated September 21, 2026
balk pronunciation
/BALK/
Meaning
Means ridge/raised strip of land. Southern and Appalachian speakers still use "balk" in ordinary talk. The examples keep the spoken shape instead of polishing it into classroom English.
How folks use it
- “They meant ridge/raised strip of land, plain and simple: balk.”
- “If somebody says balk, they mean ridge/raised strip of land.”
Origin and etymology
Alive in Southern and Appalachian English with the sense "ridge/raised strip of land." Print history is uneven for some oral forms, so this entry sticks to how people use it now rather than guessing a folk story.