I. ˈstōn noun
( -s ; see sense 3 )
Etymology: Middle English stan, ston, stoon, from Old English stān; akin to Old High German stein stone, Old Norse steinn, Gothic stains stone, Latin stiria icicle, Greek stia, stion pebble, stear fat, tallow, Sanskrit styāyate it congeals, hardens; basic meaning: to harden
1. : a concretion of earthy or mineral matter of igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic origin:
a.
(1) : such a concretion of indeterminate size or shape : boulder , pebble
stones rolling down the hill
gathering stones on the beach
(2) : the substance of this concretion : rock
the mountain is solid stone
trees turned to stone in the petrified forest
b. : such a concretion mined, quarried, or shaped in a definite form or size or for a specified function: as
(1) : a building block
demolish the structure a stone at a time
(2) : a paving block : cobblestone
building barricades of the very stones of the streets
(3) : a precious stone : gem
(4) : a mineral matter used for a particular ornamental or commercial purpose
ornaments made of the rarer stones — banded slate, rose quartz, steatite — American Guide Series: New Jersey
(5) : a pillar or block of stone set as a monument or sign ; especially : gravestone
the burying ground, where you can find the stones of veterans of the Revolution — J.P.Marquand
(6) : a rounded missile fired from an arm or a sling
six stones for his sling
(7) : a shaped piece of rock used in a feat of strength (as curling)
(8) : millstone
(9) : grindstone
(10) : whetstone
(11) : a stand or table with a smooth flat top on which to impose or set type — called also surface
(12) : a surface upon which a drawing, text, or design to be lithographed is drawn or transferred
(13) : a watch jewel
2. : something resembling a small stone or pebble in shape, composition, or hardness: as
a.
(1) : calculus 1a
(2) : a hard natural growth (as an otolith) found in an animal
b. : testis
c. : hailstone
d.
(1) : the hard central portion of a drupaceous fruit (as a peach)
(2) : a hard stonelike seed (as of a date)
3. plural usually stone : any of various units of weight ranging from 4 to 26 pounds: as
a. : an official British unit equal to 14 pounds
b. : a British unit for meat equal to 8 pounds — called also Smithfield stone
4. : any of the colors common in stone or weathered rock — see deep stone , honey 6, light stone , stone gray
5. : china stone , cornish stone
6. : a small crystalline contamination in glass comprising unmelted batch material or a particle of the melting vessel
7. : a playing piece used in backgammon
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English stanen, stonen, from stan, ston, stoon, n.
transitive verb
1. : to hurl stones or sometimes other missiles at
was stoned by abolitionists — Mari Sandoz
began stoning us with empty beer cans — Leslie Waller
especially : to kill by hitting with stones
he shall be stoned or shot; whether beast or man, he shall not live — Exod 19:13 (Revised Standard Version)
2.
a. archaic : to make (a person) hard or insensitive to feeling
O perjured woman! Thou dost stone my heart — Shakespeare
b. : to make numb or insensible (as from drink or narcotics)
planned to stone himself with vodka — Truman Capote
3. : to face, pave, or fortify with stones
has dug a well and is stoning it
4.
a. : to free from stones
b. : to remove the stones or seeds of (a fruit)
500 grams of prunes stoned in advance — E.V.Knight
5.
a. : to rub, scour, or polish (as leather, dies, machined metal) with a stone
b. : to sharpen with a whetstone
stoned and whetted to a razor edge — American Guide Series: Connecticut
intransitive verb
: to form or develop a stone in the process of growing
III. adjective
Etymology: stone (I)
1. : of, relating to, or made of stone
2. often capitalized : of or relating to the Stone Age
stone culture
IV. adjective
: absolute : complete
a zeal that might be called pure stone craziness — Edwin Shrake
V. adverb
: absolutely : completely — used as an intensive
it is a stone positive fact, a scientific certainty — R.A.Aurthur