| • | A ridge of land left unplowed between furrows, or at the end of a field; a piece missed by the plow slipping aside. |
| • | A great beam, rafter, or timber; esp., the tie-beam of a house. The loft above was called "the balks." |
| • | One of the beams connecting the successive supports of a trestle bridge or bateau bridge. |
| • | A hindrance or disappointment; a check. |
| • | A sudden and obstinate stop; a failure. |
| • | A deceptive gesture of the pitcher, as if to deliver the ball. |
| • | To leave or make balks in. |
| • | To leave heaped up; to heap up in piles. |
| • | To omit, miss, or overlook by chance. |
| • | To miss intentionally; to avoid; to shun; to refuse; to let go by; to shirk. |
| • | To disappoint; to frustrate; to foil; to baffle; to /hwart; as, to balk expectation. |
| • | To engage in contradiction; to be in opposition. |
| • | To stop abruptly and stand still obstinately; to jib; to stop short; to swerve; as, the horse balks. |
| • | To indicate to fishermen, by shouts or signals from shore, the direction taken by the shoals of herring. |
