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stone

Syllabification: (stone)
Pronunciation: /stōn/
Translate stone | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of stone

noun

  • 1the hard, solid, nonmetallic mineral matter of which rock is made, especially as a building material:the houses are built of stone [as modifier]:high stone walls
  • a small piece of rock found on the ground.
  • (in metaphorical use) weight or lack of feeling, expression, or movement:Isabel stood as if turned to stone her face became as hard as stone the elevator dropped like a stone
  • Astronomy a meteorite made of rock, as opposed to metal.
  • Medicine a calculus; a gallstone or kidney stone.
  • 2a piece of stone shaped for a purpose, especially one of commemoration, ceremony, or demarcation:a memorial stone boundary stones
  • a gem or jewel.
  • short for curling stone.
  • a round piece or counter, originally made of stone, used in various board games such as backgammon.
  • a large flat table or sheet, originally made of stone and later usually of metal, on which pages of type were made up.
  • 3a hard seed in a cherry, plum, peach, and some other fruits.
  • 4 (plural same) British a unit of weight equal to 14 pounds (6.35 kg):I weighed 10 stone
  • 5a natural shade of whitish-gray or brownish-gray: [as modifier]:stone stretch trousers

verb

[with object]
  • 1throw stones at:policemen were stoned by the crowd
  • 2remove the stone from (a fruit):halve, stone, and peel the avocados
  • 3build, face, or pave with stone.

Phrases

be written (or engraved or set) in stone

used to emphasize that something is fixed and unchangeable:anything can change—nothing is written in stone

cast (or throw) the first stone

be the first to make an accusation (used to emphasize that a potential critic is not wholly blameless).
[with biblical allusion to John 8:7]

leave no stone unturned

try every possible course of action in order to achieve something.

stone me! (or stone the crows!)

British informal an exclamation of surprise or shock.

a stone's throw

a short distance:wild whales blowing a stone’s throw from the boat

Derivatives

stoneless

adjective

Origin:

Old English stān (noun), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch steen and German Stein. The verb dates from Middle English (first recorded stone (sense 1 of the noun))

stone in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of stone in the British & World English dictionary