# stone

> English word · Noun · IPA /stəʊ̯n/ · frequency rank #1,676

## Definitions
1. A hard earthen substance that can form rocks; especially, such substance when regarded as a building material.
2. A piece of such material: a rock or a pebble.
3. A gemstone, a jewel, especially a diamond.
4. A unit of weight equal to 14 pounds (≈6.3503 kilograms), formerly used for various commodities (wool, cheese, etc.), but now principally used for personal weight. Abbreviated as st.
5. The central part of some fruits, particularly drupes; consisting of the seed and a hard endocarp layer.
6. A hard, stone-like deposit.
7. A playing piece made of any hard material, used in various board games such as backgammon and go.
8. A dull light grey or beige, like that of some stones.
9. A 42-pound, precisely shaped piece of granite with a handle attached, which is bowled down the ice.
10. A monument to the dead; a gravestone or tombstone.
11. A mirror, or its glass.
12. A testicle.
13. A stand or table with a smooth, flat top of stone, commonly marble, on which to arrange the pages of a book, newspaper, etc. before printing.

## Etymology
From Middle English ston, stone, stan, from Old English stān, from Proto-West Germanic *stain, from Proto-Germanic *stainaz (“stone”), from Proto-Indo-European *steyh₂- (“to stiffen”).
Cognates
Cognate with Scots stane (“stone”), Yola sthoan (“stone”), North Frisian stean, stian, stiin, stiinj (“stone”), Saterland Frisian Steen (“stone”), West Frisian stien (“stone”), Alemannic German Steei (“rock, stone”), Bavarian Staa (“rock, stone”), Central Franconian Steen, Stään (“stone”), Dutch steen (“stone”), German Stein (“rock, stone”), German Low German Steen, Stein (“stone”), Luxembourgish Steen (“stone”), Vilamovian śtan (“stone”), Yiddish שטיין (shteyn, “stone”), Danish and Swedish sten (“stone”), Elfdalian stien (“stone”), Faroese steinur (“stone”), Gutnish stain (“rock, stone”), Icelandic steinn (“rock, stone”), Norwegian Bokmål stein, sten (“stone”), Norwegian Nynorsk steidn, stein (“stone”), Gothic 𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌽𐍃 (stains, “stone”). Compare also Ancient Greek στία (stía, “pebble”), στέαρ (stéar, “tallow”), Lithuanian sténgti (“to be able, make an effort; to oppose”), Russian стена́ (stená, “wall”), Albanian shtëng (“hardened or pressed matter”), Sanskrit स्तिया (stiyā, “still or stagnant water”). Doublet of stain, stean, and stein.

## Easily confused with
- **stop** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stop)
- **stun** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stun)
- **stow** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stow)
- **story** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-story)
- **style** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-style)
- **store** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-store)
- **storm** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-storm)
- **stood** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stood)
- **stops** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stops)
- **stunt** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stunt)
- **stove** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stove)
- **swore** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-swore)
- **stool** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stool)
- **swine** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-swine)
- **stout** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stout)
- **stony** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stony)
- **stung** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stung)
- **stoop** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stoop)
- **Stowe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stowe)
- **stork** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stone-vs-stork)

## Common misspellings (7)
`sotne`, `sstone`, `stnoe`, `stoen`, `stonne`, `sttone`, `tsone`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/stone