stone
the hard substance, formed of mineral matter, of which rocks consist.
a rock or particular piece or kind of rock, as a boulder or piece of agate.
a piece of rock quarried and worked into a specific size and shape for a particular purpose: paving stone;building stone.
a small piece of rock, as a pebble.
Chiefly British. one of various units of weight, especially the British unit equivalent to 14 pounds (6.4 kilograms).
something resembling a small piece of rock in size, shape, or hardness.
any small, hard seed, as of a date; pit.
Botany. the hard endocarp of a drupe, as of a peach.
Pathology. a calculous concretion in the body, as in the kidney, gallbladder, or urinary bladder.
a gravestone or tombstone.
grindstone: Don’t even think about using that stone until you’ve got your safety glasses on.
millstone: The gristmill’s original pair of stones were made from volcanic lava deposits in southern Italy.
hailstone: With many verified reports of stones as large as 6 inches in diameter, we can tell you this was no ordinary hailstorm.
curling stone: Friction between the stone and the surface of the ice is controlled by many parameters, including velocity.
Building Trades. any of various artificial materials imitating cut stone or rubble.
Printing. a table with a smooth surface, formerly made of stone, on which page forms are composed.
(in lithography) any surface on which an artist draws or etches a picture or design from which a lithograph is made.
a playing piece in the game of dominoes, checkers, or backgammon.
Slang: Vulgar.Usually stones . testes.
made of or pertaining to stone.
made of stoneware: a stone mug or bottle.
completely; totally (usually used in combination): stone cold.
to throw stones at; drive by pelting with stones.
to put to death by pelting with stones.
to provide, fit, pave, line, face or fortify with stones.
to rub (something) with or on a stone, as to sharpen, polish, or smooth.
to remove stones from, as fruit.
Obsolete. to make insensitive or unfeeling.
Idioms about stone
cast the first stone, to be the first to condemn or blame a wrongdoer; be hasty in one's judgment: What right has she to cast the first stone?
leave no stone unturned, to exhaust every possibility in attempting to achieve one's goal; spare no effort: We will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to find the culprit.
set in stone, to put (something) in final form; finalize so as to prevent change or reversal:These schematics for the library renovation are only proposals—nothing yet is set in stone.: Also set / cast in concrete .
Origin of stone
1Other words from stone
- ston·a·ble, stone·a·ble, adjective
- stone·less, adjective
- stone·less·ness, noun
- stone·like, adjective
- un·ston·a·ble, un·stone·a·ble, adjective
Words that may be confused with stone
- boulder, cobblestone, granule, pebble, rock, stone
Other definitions for Stone (2 of 2)
Edward Du·rell [doo-rel, dyoo-], /dʊˈrɛl, dyʊ-/, 1902–78, U.S. architect.
Har·lan Fiske [hahr-luhn], /ˈhɑr lən/, 1872–1946, U.S. jurist: chief justice of the U.S. 1941–46.
Irving, 1903–1989, U.S. author.
I(sidor) F(ein·stein) [fahyn-stahyn], /ˈfaɪn staɪn/, "Izzy", 1907–1989, U.S. political journalist.
Lucy, 1818–93, U.S. suffragist (wife of Henry Brown Blackwell).
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use stone in a sentence
stone mentions DraftKings and FanDuel specifically because they’re the two biggest players in the market and have been for some time.
Free money, big addictions: Inside the booming world of online sports betting | Brett Haensel | November 15, 2020 | Fortunestone’s stopped carrying drugs like fentanyl patches and oxycodone, and though that distributor now pays the tax itself, the pharmacy is still feeling the effects.
Patients struggle to access prescription opioids after New York tax drives away suppliers | lbelanger225 | November 15, 2020 | FortuneNothing is set in stone, but obviously, trying to make an Olympic team is really important to an elite athlete.
17-Year-Old Tierney Wolfgram's Meteoric Rise | Martin Fritz Huber | November 11, 2020 | Outside OnlineVirtual concepts are also emerging as stepping stones for unestablished entrepreneurs.
Ghost Kitchens Are the Wave of the Future. But Is That a Good Thing? | Kristen Hawley | November 9, 2020 | EaterNASA has also signed an agreement with private space station builder Axiom to attach one of its modules to the space station in 2024, which the company plans to use as a stepping stone towards building its own commercial space station.
The International Space Station Is Ailing. Its Replacement Will Shape the Future of Space Exploration | Edd Gent | November 9, 2020 | Singularity Hub
When residents gathered, the fighters told them to carry out the sentence: Stoning to death for the alleged adulteress.
Also this week a Republican candidate for the state House of Representatives in Oklahoma endorsed stoning gay people to death.
Stoning is practiced or authorized by law in 15 countries now.
How the Sultan of Brunei Violated His Sharia Law With Me | Jillian Lauren | May 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIn the Taliban-controlled territory of the northwestern tribal agencies, the penalty is worse: death by firing squad or stoning.
Pakistan’s Gay Community Quietly Breaking Barriers | Ron Moreau, Sami Yousafzai | October 30, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTIt said at least 15 men and women face sentences of death by stoning on charges of adultery.
With these feelings, I gave an agitated knock—they were stoning the plums, and did not immediately attend.
A single standard is an improvement upon the old habit of stoning the woman only and letting the man go free.
Sex=The Unknown Quantity | Ali NomadBlasphemy was the blackest crime in the Mosaic category; and the prescribed penalty was death by stoning.
The Vitality of Mormonism--Brief Essays | James E. TalmageThere were signs of richness all around us—stoning of raisins, cutting of citron, slicing of candied orange peel.
Ephraim watched her sharply; he sat by a window stoning raisins.
Pembroke | Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
British Dictionary definitions for stone (1 of 3)
/ (stəʊn) /
the hard compact nonmetallic material of which rocks are made: Related adjective: lithic
a small lump of rock; pebble
jewellery short for gemstone
a piece of rock designed or shaped for some particular purpose
(in combination): gravestone; millstone
something that resembles a stone
(in combination): hailstone
the woody central part of such fruits as the peach and plum, that contains the seed; endocarp
any similar hard part of a fruit, such as the stony seed of a date
plural stone British a unit of weight, used esp to express human body weight, equal to 14 pounds or 6.350 kilograms
Also called: granite the rounded heavy mass of granite or iron used in the game of curling
pathol a nontechnical name for calculus
printing a table with a very flat iron or stone surface upon which hot-metal pages are composed into formes; imposition table
rare (in certain games) a piece or man
any of various dull grey colours
(as adjective): stone paint
(modifier) relating to or made of stone: a stone house
(modifier) made of stoneware: a stone jar
cast a stone at cast aspersions upon
heart of stone an obdurate or unemotional nature
leave no stone unturned to do everything possible to achieve an end
(in combination) completely: stone-cold; stone-dead
to throw stones at, esp to kill
to remove the stones from
to furnish or provide with stones
stone the crows British and Australian slang an expression of surprise, dismay, etc
Origin of stone
1Derived forms of stone
- stonable or stoneable, adjective
- stoneless, adjective
- stonelessness, noun
- stonelike, adjective
British Dictionary definitions for Stone (2 of 3)
/ (stəʊn) /
Oliver. born 1946, US film director and screenwriter: his films include Platoon (1986), Born on the Fourth of July (1989), JFK (1991), Nixon (1995), Alexander (2004), and World Trade Center (2006)
Sharon. born 1958, US film actress: her films include Basic Instinct (1991), Casino (1995), and Cold Creek Manor (2003)
British Dictionary definitions for stone- (3 of 3)
very; completely: stone-blind; stone-cold
Origin of stone-
3Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for stone
[ stōn ]
Rock, especially when used in construction.
The hard, woody inner layer (the endocarp) of a drupe such as a cherry or peach. Not in scientific use.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Other Idioms and Phrases with stone
In addition to the idioms beginning with stone
- stone cold
- stone deaf
also see:
- cast in stone
- cast the first stone
- flat (stone) broke
- heart of stone
- leave no stone unturned
- rolling stone gathers no moss
- run into a stone wall
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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