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stock

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

5 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "stock", 5-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "stock" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "stock" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

stock is aEnglishnoun. It means: A store or supply. Pronounced /stɒk/. It ranks #1,255 in English word frequency. Often confused with stop and suck.

Key facts for stock
PropertyValue
Headwordstock
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/stɒk/
Letters5
Frequency rank#1,255
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of stock in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for stock is 5 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /stɒk/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,255 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text.Wiktionary records 42 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 8 documented wrong-spelling variants for stock, with forms such as "sotck", "sstock", and "stcok". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "stop", "suck", "stow", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English stok, from Old English stocc, from Proto-West Germanic *stokk, from Proto-Germanic *stukkaz (“tree-trunk”). Modern senses are mostly referring either to the trunk from which the tree grows (figuratively, its origin and/or support/foundat… Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is stock, spelled S-T-O-C-K, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A store or supply.
  2. 2
    A store or supply.
  3. 3
    A store or supply.
  4. 4
    A store or supply.
  5. 5
    A store or supply.
  6. 6
    A store or supply.
  7. 7
    A store or supply.
  8. 8
    The capital raised by a company through the issue of shares; the total of shares held by an individual shareholder.
  9. 9
    The capital raised by a company through the issue of shares; the total of shares held by an individual shareholder.
  10. 10
    The capital raised by a company through the issue of shares; the total of shares held by an individual shareholder.
  11. 11
    The capital raised by a company through the issue of shares; the total of shares held by an individual shareholder.
  12. 12
    The capital raised by a company through the issue of shares; the total of shares held by an individual shareholder.
  13. 13
    The raw material from which things are made, such as feedstock.
  14. 14
    The raw material from which things are made, such as feedstock.
  15. 15
    The raw material from which things are made, such as feedstock.
  16. 16
    The raw material from which things are made, such as feedstock.
  17. 17
    Stock theater, summer stock theater.
  18. 18
    The trunk and woody main stems or limbs of a tree; the base from which something grows or branches.
  19. 19
    The trunk and woody main stems or limbs of a tree; the base from which something grows or branches.
  20. 20
    The trunk and woody main stems or limbs of a tree; the base from which something grows or branches.
  21. 21
    The trunk and woody main stems or limbs of a tree; the base from which something grows or branches.
  22. 22
    Any of the several species of cruciferous flowers in the genus Matthiola.
  23. 23
    A handle or stem to which the working part of an implement or weapon is attached.
  24. 24
    A handle or stem to which the working part of an implement or weapon is attached.
  25. 25
    Part of a machine that supports items or holds them in place.
  26. 26
    Part of a machine that supports items or holds them in place.
  27. 27
    A bar, stick, or rod.
  28. 28
    A bar, stick, or rod.
  29. 29
    A bar, stick, or rod.
  30. 30
    A bar, stick, or rod.
  31. 31
    A type of (now formal or official) neckwear.
  32. 32
    A type of (now formal or official) neckwear.
  33. 33
    A bed for infants; a crib, cot, or cradle
  34. 34
    A piece of wood magically made to be just like a real baby and substituted for it by magical beings.
  35. 35
    A cover for the legs; a stocking.
  36. 36
    A block of wood; something fixed and solid; a pillar; a firm support; a post.
  37. 37
    A person who is as dull and lifeless as a stock or post; one who has little sense.
  38. 38
    The longest part of a split tally stick formerly struck in the exchequer, which was delivered to the person who had lent the king money on account, as the evidence of indebtedness.
  39. 39
    The frame or timbers on which a ship rests during construction.
  40. 40
    Red and grey bricks, used for the exterior of walls and the front of buildings.
  41. 41
    In tectology, an aggregate or colony of individuals, such as trees, chains of salpae, etc.
  42. 42
    The beater of a fulling mill.

Etymology

From Middle English stok, from Old English stocc, from Proto-West Germanic *stokk, from Proto-Germanic *stukkaz (“tree-trunk”). Modern senses are mostly referring either to the trunk from which the tree grows (figuratively, its origin and/or support/foundation), or to a piece of wood, stick, or rod. The senses of "supply" and "raw material" arose from a probable conflation with steck (“an item of goods, merchandise”) or the use of split tally sticks consisting of foil or counterfoil and stock to capture paid taxes, debts or exchanges. Doublet of chock.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: sotck,sstock,stcok,stocck,stockk,stokc,sttock,tsock

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for stock

Misspelling Variants of "stock"

sotck5sstock6stcok5stocck6stockk6stokc5sttock6tsock5
Misspelling Variants of "stock"

Frequency rank: #1,255 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "stock"?
"stock" is spelled S-T-O-C-K. The IPA pronunciation is /stɒk/.
What does "stock" mean?
As a noun, "stock" means: A store or supply.
What words are commonly confused with "stock"?
"stock" is commonly confused with "stop", "suck", "stow". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "stock"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "stock" is /stɒk/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "stock"?
From Middle English stok, from Old English stocc, from Proto-West Germanic *stokk, from Proto-Germanic *stukkaz (“tree-trunk”). Modern senses are mostly referring either to the trunk from which the tree grows (figuratively, its origin and/or suppo... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter S in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.