(a) A discrete piece of rock, esp. one of small or medium size; a stone, pebble; also, a large discrete piece of rock, a boulder; a standing stone, monolith; (b) a ston(es cast, the throuinge of a ~, the distance one can throw a stone, a stone's throw; also, in adverbial constructions: for the distance of a stone's throw, as far as a stone's throw; a finger ~ cast, ?as far as a short stone's throw, for a short distance; as heighe as a ston(es cast, as high as one can throw a stone; bithinne the time of a stones cast, in the time it takes to throw a stone, in an instant; (c) a large mass of rock, rocky outcropping; a cliff, crag; also, bedrock, rocky ground; a piece of rocky ground; on (to) the ~, on the stones, to the ground; under the stones, under the ground; fallen up the ~, to fall to the ground, fall down; (d) the substance of which rock or stone consists, hard, nonmetallic mineral matter; rokke of ~; (e) fig. and in fig. contexts; (f) in cpds. & combs.: ~ contre, stony land; ~ ded, q.v.; stones fishes, ?small fish caught in rocky waters; ~ flie, any of the various insects of the order Plecoptera, used as fish bait; ~ hard, q.v.; ~ hering, hering de ~, ?herring caught in rocky waters; ~ naked, stark naked; ~ rokke, a boulder; also fig.; ~ stille, q.v.; ~ yeld, some kind of customary payment, perh. in lieu of hauling rock or stones; augrim ~, a stone inscribed with an Arabic numeral and used in computing; bulder ~, a large stone; cristal ~; lim ~ [see also lim n. 4.(c)]; marble ~, q.v.; steppinge ~, a stone in a stream used for crossing; wildernesses ~, the wilderness, wasteland; (g) in conventional comparisons, as a type or an emblem of hardness, immobility, silence, lifelessness, insensibility, etc.; also, as a type or an emblem of stability, steadfastness, etc.; as ~, as (than) a ~, as (than)..gravel stones, etc.; nede as ~, quite necessarily; fallen doun as a ~, to plunge like a stone, fall straight and hard; (h) in generalizing phrases, with alliteration: at stok ne ~, at anything; bi stok other ~, anywhere; bi strete and ~, by every possible way; bothe stok and ~, everything; over stile and (over) ~, over stok and over ~, over a long distance; sparen nouther stub no ~, to stop for nothing; (i) in asseverations; (j) in proverbs and prov. expressions.

A stone used as a missile: (a) a stone thrown by hand to injure or kill, esp. one used to stone a person or an animal to death; (b) a stone hurled from a sling or catapult in combat or warfare, a stone shot from a gun [a few quots. may belong in (a)]; gonne ~, q.v.; slinge ~; ~ bagge, ?a bag for holding stone shot; ~ boue, an arbalest; ~ caster, one who hurls or shoots stones; ~ casting, the hurling or shooting of stones; ~ slinge, a sling used to hurl stones; (c) a stone used in a throwing contest; ~ casting, a contest in which a stone is thrown or put; casten (putten) the ~, pilten with the ~, to throw or put the stone in a contest; (d) in proverbs.

(a) Stone as the material of which something is made or consists; stone as a medium; also, in combs.: ~ morter, ~ trough; writen in ~, to write on stone; (b) fig. herte of ~, a hard heart; ben of stones, of hearts: to be hard, be pitiless; (c) as adj.: made of stone; -- used fig.

(a) A cave; (b) a sepulchre; a tomb of rock; grave ~, q.v.; marme ~, q.v.; (c) a gravestone; also, the stone sealing a tomb or sepulchre; grave ~, q.v.; under ~, in a grave, in the grave; also, ?in the catacombs [quot. c1380].

(a) A stone pillar or monument; a boundary stone; a milestone; also, a stone tablet; grei ~, a gray stone marking a boundary; hor ~ [see also hor adj. 1.(a)]; (b) a stone-like pillar of salt; (c) a stone used as an idol; a stone idol; (d) a stone used as an executioner's block; (e) a stone altar; ~ of the auter, an altar slab, the top of an altar; auter ~ [see auter n. 3.(c)]; (f) a stone vessel, container, or box; a hollowed-out stone used as a basin or a baptismal font; also, ?a stone vessel for holy water [1st quot.]; cristal ~, a case or box made of crystal; font ~, q.v.; holi water ~; stepe ~, a vessel for soaking barley; (g) a stone knife; also fig.; (h) fat stones, ?heavy stones used to compress cheese in a cheese vat.

(a) A millstone; dogge ~; grind ~, q.v.; grindel ~, q.v.; grindinge ~ [see grinding(e ger. 2.]; hounde ~, q.v.; milne ~, q.v.; querne ~ [see also quern(e n.(2) 1.(b)]; ~ grist, ?the right to use a mill; (b) a stone used for sharpening a blade, whetstone; grind ~, q.v.; grindel ~, q.v.; grindinge ~ [see also grinding(e ger. 2.]; slike ~, q.v.; whet ~, q.v.; (c) a stone used as a mortar; (d) strake ~, ?a piece of stone used in fashioning strakes [cp. strake n.(2) 1.(a)].

(a) A stone used in building; a shaped building stone, a cut stone; ?graven ~, ?a hewn stone [quot. a1399]; (b) coll. building stones; also, stonework, stone masonry; ~ beringe, the carrying of stone; stones kin [cp. OE stān-cynn], a kind of stone; ~ of kent, mestham (yorkshire, etc.) ~; (c) fig. and in fig. contexts; (d) a stone cell; a stone fortress; a stone prison; also, a dovecote of stone [quot. a1450 Aelred]; (e) a hearthstone; herth ~ [see herth n. (a)]; (f) a cobblestone; a paving stone; -- also coll.; also, a stone pavement, stone floor; cobel ~, q.v.; cogel ~, cogels stones; (g) in proverbs and prov. expressions.

In other cpds. & combs.: (a) ~ brigge [OE stānbrycg], a bridge made of stones or masonry; ~ dore (windou), a stone or masonry door (window) frame; ~ hous (stepel), a stone house (steeple); ~ thache, thache ~ [see thach(e n. (c)]; ~ wal, q.v.; ~ werk [OE stān-weorc], stonework, masonry; also in fig. context; (b) ~ axe [OE stān-æx], an ax for cutting and shaping stones; ~ barwe, a barrow for moving stone; ~ bot, a boat for transporting stone; ~ cart, a cart for carrying stone and other building materials; ~ hamer, a hammer for breaking or shaping stone; ~ henge, a device for clamping stones together; ~ hok, a hook or similar device for attaching a hinge to stonework; (c) ~ greve [OE stān-græf], a pit from which stone is dug, a stone pit; ~ hep, a stone pile; ~ pit, a stone pit; ~ quarrel, quarrel of ~, a stone quarry; (d) ~ brod, a nail for fastening roofing slates; -- also coll.; ~ latthe, a strip of wood to which roofing slates are nailed; -- also coll.; ~ nail, nails for securing roofing slates; ~ brod nail; (e) base ~, the ground course of stone; brod ~, ?flat stones used in building; corbel ~, a stone used in a corbel; corner ~, q.v.; cristal ~, a sheet of crystal; filling ~, stone used as fill, rubble; font ~, ?a vault stone; fre ~, q.v.; goter ~, a stone for building a gutter; hed ~, a cornerstone; also fig.; heth ~, q.v.; lim ~; marble ~, q.v.; marme ~, q.v.; masoun ~, a stone used by a mason; ragge ~, ~ ragge [see ragge n. 3.]; sclat ~ [see sclat n. 1.(d)]; sparre ~, q.v.; steppinge ~, a stone used for a step of a stairway.

(a) A piece of ore; ore ~, iron ore; (b) ~ of chalk, chalk ~, a piece of chalk; also, a hollowed piece of chalk used as a receptacle; (c) a hard stone such as flint, usu. used for starting a fire; ~ of flint, fir ~; flint ~, q.v.; ~ fir, sparks struck out of stone; (d) a loadstone; ~ and nedle, nedle and ~ [see also nedle n. 2.]; ~ adamas (adamaunt, magnes), adamaunt (magnes, seile, ship-mannes) ~; (e) adamauntines ~, a piece of adamant.

(a) A jewel, gemstone, precious stone; a magical stone; also fig. & in fig. contexts; -- also coll.; ~ of the egle, aetites, the eaglestone; ~ of inde; ~ of israel, a precious stone of some kind, perh. a sardonyx; ~ of vertu, vertuous ~, a gem or stone endowed with special powers or efficacy; ~ preciouse, preciouse ~, a precious stone [see also precious(e adj. 1.(c)]; -- also coll.; bok of stones, the name given to a lapidary; (b) in cpds. & combs.: ~ inde, inde ~ [see inde adj.(1)]; ~ iral, some kind of precious stone; ~ sardonix, sardonix (sardonicle) ~, a sardonyx; adamaunt ~, a precious stone of some kind; carbuncle ~ [see carbuncle n. 2.(a), (b)]; -- also coll.; jaspre ~ [see jaspre n. (b)]; margarite (margerie) ~, a pearl; also fig.; sonne ~, a bright gem of some kind; (c) alch. the philosophers' stone; one of the varieties of philosophers' stone; philosophre(s ~; mineral ~, one of three varieties of the philosophers' stone [cp. mineral n. (c)]; red (whit) ~, the red (white) elixir transmuting substances to gold (silver).

A small seed in a fruit; the pit of a fruit; -- also coll. [1st quot.]; also, a kernel or bit of husk of grain [quot. a1425, 1st]; an achene in a rosehip [quot. c1400]; ~ grape; cheri ~ [see also cheri n. 2.(b)]; cobel ~; date ~.

(a) A hardened lump or mass of a substance resembling a stone; ~ piche, solidified wood tar; (b) a tile, piece of tile; -- also coll.; also, a brick; clei ~, ?bricks; tile ~ [see also tile n.(2)]; (c) a piece of glass; ~ of glas, a piece of glass cut so as to resemble a jewel; (d) ~ of inde, ?the fossilized spikes or spines of sea urchins; ~ of a sponge, ~ that highte spongia, the calcareous deposits found in a sponge; (e) ~ stikel, a fish of the family Gasterosteidae, a stickleback.

A hailstone; ~ of hail; hail ~ [see hail n. 2.(c)]; hail of stones.

Med. (a) A calculus or stone in the bladder, kidney, etc.; a kidney stone; a gallstone; also, a lump blocking the bowels of a hawk; clei ~; maladie (siknesse) of the ~, an acute kidney stone attack or similar ailment; fallen in-to the ~, to become afflicted with a calculus; (b) a hard lump or swelling in the body; also, a lump of scarified tissue [quot. Chauliac(2)].

Anat. (a) A testicle of a man or an animal; -- also with punning ref. to sense 9.(a) [quot. c1450, 2nd]; stones of gendrure, gendringe stones; ballok ~; prive ~, q.v.; (b) stones (of the moder, the ovaries.

A unit of weight, often fourteen pounds, but varying according to district and commodity; -- also coll.; ~ weght; half ~, a half stone.

A star.

In plant names: (a) ~ crop [OE stān-cropp], a plant of the genus Sedum, either stonecrop (S. acre) or rock stonecrop (S. reflexum); also, the leaves of this plant, used medicinally; (b) ~ breke, meadow saxifrage (Saxifraga granulata); ~ hore, q.v.; ~ hose, q.v.; ~ souke, a plant of the parsley family, prob. the common or garden parsley (Petroselinum crispum); ~ wort, the drop wort (Spiraea filipendula).

(a) In surnames; (b) in place names [see Smith PNElem.2.143-5].