I. ˈräkē, -ki adjective
( -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English rokky, from rokke rock, cliff + -y, adjective suffix
1. : abounding in or consisting of rocks
a rocky shore
2. : difficult to impress or affect : hard , insensitive , obdurate
may he also move my mind, and rocky heart so strike and rend — James Howell
3. : firmly held : steadfast
eccentrics … have their rocky rightness even when the world judges them to have been wildly wrong — Times Literary Supplement
II. adjective
Etymology: rock (I) + -y
1. : prone to rock or totter : unstable
wore high rocky heels — Wright Morris
2. : ill at ease, physically upset, or mentally confused (as from a blow, drinking excessively, or sickness)
feeling pretty rocky on account of the siege I went through last night — E.A.Robinson
wound up with a two-inch cut under the left eye and was rocky at the final bell — New York Times
3.
a. : appearing likely to fail : unpromising
the wedding got off to a rocky start — R.L.Taylor
b. : marked by obstacles : difficult
eight rocky months in business — Time
4. : tending towards craziness : daft
5. : uncouth , obscene
a rocky story
III. noun
( -es )
Etymology: rock (IV) + -y, n. suffix
Australia : rock crab