rock Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
    stone.
    • he threw a rock at me
  2. noun material consisting of the aggregate of minerals like those making up the Earth's crust
    stone.
    • that mountain is solid rock
    • stone is abundant in New England and there are many quarries
  3. noun United States gynecologist and devout Catholic who conducted the first clinical trials of the oral contraceptive pill (1890-1984)
    John Rock.
  4. noun (figurative) someone who is strong and stable and dependable
    • he was her rock during the crisis
    • Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church"--Gospel According to Matthew
  5. noun hard bright-colored stick candy (typically flavored with peppermint)
    rock candy.
  6. noun a genre of popular music originating in the 1950s; a blend of black rhythm-and-blues with white country-and-western
    rock 'n' roll; rock and roll; rock music; rock-and-roll; rock'n'roll.
    • rock is a generic term for the range of styles that evolved out of rock'n'roll.
  7. noun pitching dangerously to one side
    tilt; sway; careen.
  8. verb move back and forth or sideways
    shake; sway.
    • the ship was rocking
    • the tall building swayed
    • She rocked back and forth on her feet
  9. verb cause to move back and forth
    sway.
    • rock the cradle
    • rock the baby
    • the wind swayed the trees gently

WordNet

Rock noun
Definitions
  1. See Roc.
Rock noun
Etymology
OE. rocke; akin to D. rok, rokken, G. rocken, OHG. roccho, Dan. rok, Icel. rokkr. Cf. Rocket a firework.
Definitions
  1. A distaff used in spinning; the staff or frame about which flax is arranged, and from which the thread is drawn in spinning. Chapman.
    Sad Clotho held the rocke, the whiles the thread By grisly Lachesis was spun with pain, That cruel Atropos eftsoon undid. Spenser.
Rock noun
Etymology
OF. roke, F. roche; cf. Armor. roc'h, and AS. rocc.
Definitions
  1. A large concreted mass of stony material; a large fixed stone or crag. See Stone.
    Come one, come all! this rock shall fly From its firm base as soon as I. Sir W. Scott.
  2. (Geol.) Any natural deposit forming a part of the earth's crust, whether consolidated or not, including sand, earth, clay, etc., when in natural beds.
  3. That which resembles a rock in firmness; a defense; a support; a refuge.
    The Lord is my rock, and my fortress. 2 Sam. xxii. 2.
  4. Fig.: Anything which causes a disaster or wreck resembling the wreck of a vessel upon a rock.
  5. (Zoöl.) The striped bass. See under Bass. ✍ This word is frequently used in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, rock-bound, rock-built, rock-ribbed, rock-roofed, and the like.
Rock transitive verb
Etymology
AS. roccian; akin to Dan. rokke to move, to snake; cf. Icel. rukkja to pull, move, G. rücken to move, push, pull.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Rocked ;present participle & verbal noun Rocking
Definitions
  1. To cause to sway backward and forward, as a body resting on a support beneath; as, to rock a cradle or chair; to cause to vibrate; to cause to reel or totter.
    A rising earthquake rocked the ground. Dryden.
  2. To move as in a cradle; hence, to put to sleep by rocking; to still; to quiet. "Sleep rock thy brain." Shak. ✍ Rock differs from shake, as denoting a slower, less violent, and more uniform motion, or larger movements. It differs from swing, which expresses a vibratory motion of something suspended.
Rock intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To move or be moved backward and forward; to be violently agitated; to reel; to totter.
    The rocking town Supplants their footsteps. J. Philips .
  2. To roll or saway backward and forward upon a support; as, to rock in a rocking-chair.

Webster 1913