balk
9.9
The area behind a line on a pool table where the cue ball is played
- noun
- /bɔk/
- Jargon
:
zona de balk
- The player positioned the cue ball on the balk to set up his next move.
Examples
-
After accounting for the rules, I realized I had played the cue ball from the balk line.
-
That's a balk.
-
In billiards, you must shoot the cue ball from behind the balk to make a legal shot.
Surface Forms
Etymology
Balk The billiards term comes from an old English word balca meaning 'ridge' or 'beam'. The marked 'balk' area is the space behind a kind of 'barrier', which is why it got this name.
