stalk
Use Stalk in a sentence
noun
1.
the stem or main axis of a plant.
2.
any slender supporting or connecting part of a plant, as the petiole of a leaf, the peduncle of a flower, or the funicle of an ovule.
3.
a similar structural part of an animal.
4.
a stem, shaft, or slender supporting part of anything.
5.
Automotive. a slender lever, usually mounted on or near the steering wheel, that is used by the driver to control a signal or function: The horn button is on the turn-signal stalk.
Origin:
1275–1325; Middle English stalke, apparently equivalent to Old English stal(u) stave + -k diminutive suffix
1275–1325; Middle English stalke, apparently equivalent to Old English stal(u) stave + -k diminutive suffix
Related forms
stalk·like, adjective
00:10
Stalk
is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
verb (used without object)
1.
to pursue or approach prey, quarry, etc., stealthily.
2.
to walk with measured, stiff, or haughty strides: He was so angry he stalked away without saying goodbye.
3.
to proceed in a steady, deliberate, or sinister manner: Famine stalked through the nation.
4.
Obsolete. to walk or go stealthily along.
verb (used with object)
5.
to pursue (game, a person, etc.) stealthily.
6.
to proceed through (an area) in search of prey or quarry: to stalk the woods for game.
7.
to proceed or spread through in a steady or sinister manner: Disease stalked the land.
noun
8.
an act or course of stalking quarry, prey, or the like: We shot the mountain goat after a five-hour stalk.
9.
a slow, stiff stride or gait.
Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English stalken (v.), representing the base of Old English bestealcian to move stealthily, stealcung stalking (gerund); akin to steal
1250–1300; Middle English stalken (v.), representing the base of Old English bestealcian to move stealthily, stealcung stalking (gerund); akin to steal
Related forms
stalk·a·ble, adjective
stalk·er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To stalk
Collins
World English Dictionary
stalk1 (stɔːk) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | the main stem of a herbaceous plant |
| 2. | any of various subsidiary plant stems, such as a leafstalk (petiole) or flower stalk (peduncle) |
| 3. | a slender supporting structure in animals such as crinoids and certain protozoans, coelenterates, and barnacles |
| 4. | any long slender supporting shaft or column |
| [C14: probably a diminutive formed from Old English stalu upright piece of wood; related to Old Frisian staal handle] | |
| stalked1 | |
| —adj | |
| 'stalkless1 | |
| —adj | |
| 'stalklike1 | |
| —adj | |
| stalk2 (stɔːk) | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | to follow or approach (game, prey, etc) stealthily and quietly |
| 2. | to pursue persistently and, sometimes, attack (a person with whom one is obsessed, often a celebrity) |
| 3. | to spread over (a place) in a menacing or grim manner: fever stalked the camp |
| 4. | (intr) to walk in a haughty, stiff, or threatening way: he stalked out in disgust |
| 5. | to search or draw (a piece of land) for prey |
| —n | |
| 6. | the act of stalking |
| 7. | a stiff or threatening stride |
| [Old English bestealcian to walk stealthily; related to Middle Low German stolkeren, Danish stalke] | |
| 'stalker2 | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
stalk
"stem of a plant," early 14c., probably a dim. (with -k suffix) of stale "one of the uprights of a ladder, handle, stalk," from O.E. stalu "wooden part" (as of a harp), from P.Gmc. *stalo; related to O.E. steala "stalk, support," and steall "place" (see stall (2)).
stalk
"pursue stealthily," O.E. -stealcian, as in bestealcian "to steal along," from P.Gmc. *stalkojanan, probably from a frequentative of the root of steal (cf. hark from hear, talk from tell). Or it may be from a sense of stalk (v.1), influenced by
stalk (n.). Meaning "harass obsessively" first recorded 1991. Stalker earlier meant "a poacher" (1424) and "one who prowls for purposes of theft" (1508). A stalking-horse was lit. a horse trained to allow a fowler to conceal himself behind it to get within range of the game; fig. sense of "person who participates in a proceeding to disguise its real purpose" is recorded from 1612.
stalk
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
stalk (stôk)
n.
A slender or elongated support or structure, as one that connects or supports an organ.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
stalk (stôk) Pronunciation Key
|
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Example sentences
Fertilizers were a dead end: when the wheat plant's pod grew more seeds, its stalk collapsed under the weight.
When cooking asparagus, you must first break off the tough stem ends by bending the stalk.
Often, she finds it in the base of a bromeliad plant leaf, which naturally forms a small cup with the plant's stalk.
For example, regularly stroking a plant on its stalk stunts its vertical growth yet makes the stalk grow thicker.
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