stock (stock)

noun

• 1 [mass noun] the goods or merchandise kept on the premises of a shop or warehouse and available for sale or distribution: the store has a very low turnover of stock [count noun]: buy now, while stocks last! [as modifier]: stock shortages
• a supply or quantity of something accumulated or available for future use: I need to replenish my stock of wine [count noun]: fish stocks are being dangerously depleted
• farm animals such as cattle, pigs, and sheep, bred and kept for their meat or milk; livestock: all the stock were housed and fed in sheds the sale of dairy stock
• short for rolling stock.
• (also film stock) photographic film that has not been exposed or processed.
• (in some card games) the cards that have not yet been dealt, left on the table to be drawn.

• 2 [mass noun] the capital raised by a business or corporation through the issue and subscription of shares: between 1982 and 1986 the value of the company’s stock rose by 86%
• (usually stocks) a portion of this as held by an individual or group as an investment: she owned £3000 worth of stocks and shares
• (usually stocks) the shares of a particular company, type of company, or industry: blue-chip stocks
• (in the UK) securities issued by the government in fixed units with a fixed rate of interest: government gilt-edged stock
• a person’s reputation or popularity: I felt I was right, but my stock was low with this establishment

• 3 [mass noun] liquid made by cooking bones, meat, fish, or vegetables slowly in water, used as a basis for the preparation of soup, gravy, or sauces: a pint of chicken stock
• [with modifier] the raw material from which a specified commodity can be manufactured: the fat can be used as soap stock

• 4 [mass noun, usually with adjective or noun modifier] a person’s ancestry or line of descent: her mother was of French stock
• a breed, variety, or population of an animal or plant: the vineyards were ploughed up and replanted using different vine stock [count noun]: geographically separate stocks of some species are recognized

• 5the trunk or woody stem of a living tree or shrub, especially one into which a graft (scion) is inserted.
• the perennial part of a herbaceous plant, especially a rhizome.

• 6a herbaceous European plant that is cultivated for its fragrant lilac, pink, or white flowers.

  [ mid 17th century: from stock-gillyflower]

  • Genus Matthiola, family Cruciferae: several species, in particular the Brompton stock (M. incana) and the night-scented stock (M. bicornis)

• 7 (the stocks) [treated as singular or plural] historical an instrument of punishment consisting of an adjustable wooden structure with holes for securing a person’s feet and hands, in which criminals were locked and exposed to public ridicule or assault.

• 8the part of a rifle or other firearm to which the barrel and firing mechanism are attached, held against one’s shoulder when firing the gun.
• the crossbar of an anchor.
• the handle of something such as a whip or fishing rod.
• short for headstock (sense 1).
• short for tailstock.

• 9a band of white material tied like a cravat and worn as a part of formal horse-riding dress.
• a piece of black material worn under a clerical collar.

• 10 (stocks) a frame used to support a ship or boat out of water, especially when under construction.

adjective

• 1(of a product or type of product) usually kept in stock and thus regularly available for sale: 25 per cent off stock items

• 2(of a phrase or expression) so regularly used as to be automatic or hackneyed: she faltered momentarily and then resorted to the teenager’s favourite stock response ‘whatever’
• denoting a conventional character type or situation that recurs in a particular genre of literature, theatre, or film: the stock characters in every cowboy film
• denoting or relating to cinematic footage that can be regularly used in different productions, typically that of outdoor scenes used to add realism to a production shot in an indoor set.

verb

• 1have or keep a supply of (a particular product or type or product) available for sale: most supermarkets now stock a range of organic produce
• provide or fill with goods, items, or a supply of something: I must stock up the fridge (as adjective, with submodifier or in combination stocked) a well-stocked shop
• [no object] (stock up) amass supplies of something, typically for a particular occasion or purpose: I’m stocking up for Christmas you’d better stock up with fuel

• 2fit (a rifle or other firearm) with a stock: it was a fine gun which he forged, stocked, and completed himself