hark

[ hahrk ]

verb (used without object)

1. to listen attentively; hearken.

verb (used with object)

1. Archaic. to listen to; hear.

noun

1. a hunter's shout to hounds, as to encourage them in following the scent.

verb phrase

1. 1. (of hounds) to return along the course in order to regain a lost scent.
   2. to return to a previous subject or point; revert:

      He kept harking back to his early days in vaudeville.

hark

/ hɑːk /

verb

1. intr; usually imperative to listen; pay attention

Other Words From

• un·harked adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of hark¹

1175–1225; Middle English herken, earlier herkien, Old English *heorcian; cognate with Old Frisian herkia, harkia; akin to Middle Dutch harken, Middle High German, German horchen. See hearken, hear

Word History and Origins

Origin of hark¹

Old English heorcnian to hearken ; related to Old Frisian herkia, Old High German hōrechen; see hear

Example Sentences

And he expects the incoming administration will develop new regulatory changes that hark back to Trump’s first term.

From Los Angeles Times

These hark back to the 17 Protestant martyrs who were burnt in Lewes during the reign of Bloody Mary, half a century before Guy Fawkes attempted to blow up the Houses of Parliament.

From BBC

When I think of them, I hark them to the Harlem Renaissance versions of “Dreamgirls.”

From Los Angeles Times

They want to hark back to the EU’s timid origins some 60 years ago when cooperation was much more voluntary and limited.

From Seattle Times

For some observers, the protests hark back to the 1960s, and demonstrations against US involvement in the Vietnam War.

From BBC