Quick answer
A stalk is the stem of a plant, and to stalk is to follow quietly or obsessively. A stork is a large wading bird with long legs and a long bill. Remember: the bird has an r, like the r in bird.
The core difference
Stalk is a plant stem or the act of following, while stork is a bird.
- stalk — a plant stem, or to follow someone or something: The tiger stalked its prey through the tall grass.
- stork — a large, long-legged wading bird: A pair of storks nested on the old chimney.
How to tell them apart
Stork has an r, and so does bird, which is an easy way to link the word to the animal. Stalk has an a and an l, and it covers the plant stem and the verb senses of following.
The two sound similar and are easy to swap when typing quickly, for example writing stork when you mean the stalk of celery. If a sentence is about a plant, hunting or following someone, it is stalk.
Frequently asked questions
Is stalk only a noun?
No. It is also a verb meaning to approach quietly when hunting, or to follow someone obsessively and cause them fear.
Do stalk and stork sound the same?
In many accents they sound very close, and in some they are identical, so the spelling is worth checking.
What is a stork?
A stork is a large bird with long legs and a long straight bill that wades in shallow water.
