stony

or ston·ey

[ stoh-nee ]

adjective

, ston·i·er, ston·i·est.

1. full of or abounding in stones or rock:

   a stony beach.

   Synonyms: pebbly, rocky

2. pertaining to or characteristic of stone.
3. resembling or suggesting stone, especially in its hardness.
4. unfeeling; merciless; obdurate:

   a stony heart.

   Synonyms: unbending, inflexible, pitiless, flinty, hard, adamant

5. motionless or rigid; without expression, as the eyes or a look:

   a hard, stony stare.

6. petrifying; stupefying:

   stony fear.

7. having a stone or stones, as fruit.
8. Slang. stone-broke.

stony

/ ˈstəʊnɪ /

adjective

1. of or resembling stone
2. abounding in stone or stones
3. unfeeling, heartless, or obdurate
4. short for stony-broke

Derived Forms

• ˈstonily, adverb
• ˈstoniness, noun

Other Words From

• stoni·ly adverb
• stoni·ness noun
• un·stoni·ly adverb
• un·stoni·ness noun
• un·stony adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of stony¹

before 1000; Middle English; Old English stānig. See stone, -y ¹

Example Sentences

He was told it had been discovered at 18:20 on 24 September on stony ground at the bottom of a drop.

From BBC

On any day, migrants might be illegally crossing the border nearby, breaching a fence that starts, stops and varies in height, a product of shifting politics and stony slopes.

From Los Angeles Times

In a video call to fellow friend Brad Hargreaves, Jay was walking on rough, stony ground, saying he was trekking 11 hours home after missing a bus.

From BBC

The woman boarded the 5,000-gallon tanker and guided its driver through a tight lane, past houses lined with thousands of jerrycans, many chained in place, and onto a stony plateau.

From New York Times

One moving work is a wall-size, single-channel video projection of a recumbent Black torso, seen from behind, the head obscured beneath a stony pile of gray rubble.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• expressionless
• frigid