stalk

¹

[ stawk ]

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.

stalk

²

[ stawk ]

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)

1. to pursue (game, a person, etc.) stealthily.
2. to proceed through (an area) in search of prey or quarry:

   to stalk the woods for game.

3. to proceed or spread through in a steady or sinister manner:

   Disease stalked the land.

noun

1. an act or course of stalking quarry, prey, or the like:

   We shot the mountain goat after a five-hour stalk.

2. a slow, stiff stride or gait.

stalk

¹

/ stɔːk /

noun

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

stalk

²

/ stɔːk /

verb

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

noun

1. the act of stalking
2. a stiff or threatening stride

stalk

/ stôk /

1. The main stem of a plant.
2. A slender structure that supports a plant part, such as a flower or leaf.
3. A slender supporting structure in certain other organisms, such as the reproductive structure in plasmodial slime molds or the part of a mushroom below the cap.
4. A slender supporting or connecting part of an animal, such as the eyestalk of a lobster.

Derived Forms

• ˈstalkˌlike, adjective
• ˈstalkless, adjective
• stalked, adjective
• ˈstalker, noun

Other Words From

• stalklike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of stalk¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English stalk(e), apparently equivalent to Old English stal(u) “stave” + -k diminutive suffix; akin to Norwegian dialect stalk, Swedish stjelk, Danish stilk

Origin of stalk²

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English verb stalken, representing the base of Old English bestealcian “to move stealthily”; akin to steal

Word History and Origins

Origin of stalk¹

C14: probably a diminutive formed from Old English stalu upright piece of wood; related to Old Frisian staal handle

Origin of stalk²

Old English bestealcian to walk stealthily; related to Middle Low German stolkeren , Danish stalke

Example Sentences

In 1989, at the age of 21, while preparing for an audition for “The Godfather Part III,” she was shot to death on her doorstep by Robert John Bardo, who had been stalking her.

From New York Times

Gabriela entered the United States more than two decades ago, gasping for breath under a pile of corn stalks in the boot of a smuggler's car.

From BBC

It was a warm October evening and the swaths of black mustard weed on the trail had completely dried up, leaving the towering stalks spindly and bare.

From Los Angeles Times

Holly Newton was stalked and then stabbed to death by her ex-boyfriend in Hexham, Northumberland, last January.

From BBC

Logan stalked my daughter, creeping around my house at night sending photographs to my son.

From BBC

Related Words

• ambush
• chase
• haunt
• hunt
• pursue
• stride