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stone

"Stone" is a solid, everyday English word with several interesting uses. It works as a noun, a verb, and an adjective — and it even has a special meaning as a unit of weight in British English. Here are the most common and useful senses.

1nouna piece of rock

This is the most basic meaning. A stone is a hard, solid piece of rock — the kind you might find on the ground, on a beach, or in a wall. It can be tiny like a pebble or large like a boulder.

everyday language · Modern, widely used

She picked up a smooth stone from the riverbank.

The old house was built from large grey stones.

He threw a stone into the lake and watched the ripples spread.

2nounthe seed inside a fruit

Some fruits — like peaches, cherries, and plums — have a hard seed in the middle. In British English, this is called a stone. In American English, people usually say 'pit' instead.

food and cooking · Modern, widely used

Be careful when you eat the olive — it still has the stone in it.

She removed the stone from the peach before slicing it.

Cherry stones are surprisingly hard.

3nouna unit of weight (British English)

In the UK, people often measure body weight in 'stone'. One stone equals 14 pounds, or about 6.35 kilograms. You will hear this a lot in everyday British conversation about health and fitness.

British English, health and fitness · Modern, widely used in the UK

He weighs about 12 stone.

She said she lost two stone after changing her diet.

The doctor asked her weight in stone and pounds.

4verbto throw stones at someone

When you stone someone, you throw stones at them — often as a form of punishment. This is a very old practice and is now considered cruel and illegal in most countries. You will encounter this word in historical or religious texts.

history, religion, law · Used in historical and religious contexts

In ancient times, people were sometimes stoned as a punishment.

The crowd began to stone the building in protest.

Historical texts describe how criminals were stoned in public.

5verbto remove the stone from a fruit

When you prepare certain fruits for cooking or eating, you need to take out the hard seed in the middle. This action is called 'stoning' the fruit. It is a common cooking term in British English.

cooking · Modern, widely used

Stone the cherries before adding them to the cake mixture.

She stoned the plums and placed them in the baking dish.

It is easier to stone a peach when it is ripe.

6adjectivemade of stone / completely

As an adjective, 'stone' can describe something made from rock — like a stone wall or a stone floor. It is also used before certain adjectives to add strong emphasis, meaning 'completely' or 'totally'. For example, 'stone cold' means completely cold, and 'stone deaf' means completely deaf.

everyday language · Modern, widely used

They walked along a narrow stone path through the garden.

The soup was stone cold by the time it arrived.

He slept through the whole alarm — he must be stone deaf!

Content generated by AI — may contain inaccuracies