rock

1 a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter; "he threw a rock at me" [syn: stone]

2 material consisting of the aggregate of minerals like those making up the Earth's crust; "that mountain is solid rock"; "stone is abundant in New England and there are many quarries" [syn: stone]

3 United States gynecologist and devout Catholic who conducted the first clinical trials of the oral contraceptive pill (1890-1984) [syn: John Rock]

4 (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 hard stick bright-colored stick candy typically peppermint flavored [syn: rock candy]

6 a genre of popular music originating in the 1950s; a blend of Black rhythm-and-blues with White country-and-western; "rock is a generic term for the range of styles that evolved out of rock'n'roll." [syn: rock 'n' roll, rock'n'roll, rock-and-roll, rock and roll, rock music]

7 pitching dangerously to one side [syn: careen, sway, tilt]

1 move back and forth or sideways; "the ship was rocking"; "the tall building swayed"; "She rocked back and forth on her feet" [syn: sway, shake]

2 cause to move back and forth; "rock the cradle"; "rock the baby"; "the wind swayed the trees gently" [syn: sway]

English

Pronunciation

• , /rɒk/, /rQk/
• a RP
• a GenAm
• a AusE
• Audio files:
• Rhymes:

Homophones

• roc

Etymology 1

From roque, compare French roche

Noun

1. The naturally occurring aggregate of solid mineral matter that constitutes a significant part of the earth's crust.

   The face of the cliff is solid rock.

2. A mass of stone projecting out of the ground or water.

   The ship crashed on the rocks.

3. A boulder or large stone.

   Some fool has thrown a rock through my window.

4. A large hill or island having no vegetation.

   Pearl Rock near Cape Cod is so named because the morning sun makes it gleam like a pearl.

   • Pearl, Wikipedia http://www.answers.com/topic/paarl

     The location is particularly well known for its Pearl Mountain or "Pearl Rock". This huge granite rock is formed by three rounded outcrops that make up Pearl Mountain and has been compared in majesty to Uluru (formerly known as Ayers Rock) in Australia."

5. Something that is strong, stable, and dependable; a person who provides security or support to another.
   • 1611, King James Bible, Matthew 16:18,

     And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

   • 1991, Robert Harling and Andrew Bergman, Soapdish, Paramount Pictures,

     Celeste Talbert: She is my rock, my right hand.

6. Any natural material with a distinctive composition of minerals.
7. A precious stone or gem, especially a diamond.

   Look at the size of that rock on her finger!

8. A lump or cube of ice.

   I'll have a whisky on the rocks, please.

9. A type of confectionery made from sugar in the shape of a stick, traditionally having some text running through its length.

   While we're in Brighton, let's get a stick of rock!

10. A crystalized lump of crack cocaine.
11. An unintelligent person, especially one who repeats mistakes.
12. In the context of "South African|slang|derogatory}} An Afrikaner.

Rock(s) may refer to:

Geology

• Rock (geology), a substance composed of mineral that can consist in particulate form or in large form (mountains, tectonic plates, planets)
• Rock salt or Halite, an unrefined form of sodium chloride
• Rock, slang for a gemstone, usually understood to be a diamond

People

• Allan Rock, Canadian Justice Minister, Health Minister and diplomat
• Andrew Rock, Olympic athlete
• Bob Rock, musician, sound engineer and record producer
• Chris Rock, American comedian
• David M. Rock, former mayor of Central Elgin, Ontario, Canada
• John Rock (American scientist), one of the inventors of the contraceptive pill
• Joseph Rock, Austrian-American explorer, geographer and botanist
• Kid Rock, American rapper and rock musician
• Raymond Rock, Canadian politician
• Rock Hudson, American actor
• Rock (rapper), half of the hip hop duo Heltah Skeltah
• Robert Rock, Loyalist gang leader from North Belfast
• Rock Whittington, guitarist
• The Rock (entertainer), Dwayne Johnson, actor and former professional wrestler
• Rahman "Rock" Harper, winner of Hell's Kitchen Season 3
• Tim Raines, American baseball player, nicknamed "Rock"

Places

• "The Rock", a nickname for Gibraltar

United Kingdom

• Rock, Cornwall, UK
• Rock, Worcestershire, UK

United States

• Rock, Kansas
• Rock Township, Benson County, North Dakota
• Rock County, Wisconsin
• Rock, Wisconsin:
  • Rock, Rock County, Wisconsin
  • Rock, Wood County, Wisconsin
• Rock Island, Illinois, USA
• Rock River (Illinois), which flows from southern Wisconsin into the Mississippi River
• "The Rock", a slang name for Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay and the former federal prison located on it

Food

• Rock (confectionery), made and sold in many of the UK's seaside holiday resorts
• Rock candy, a type of confectionery composed of large sugar crystals
• Rock (chicken), a breed of chicken
• "Rocks", slang for ice when used with alcoholic beverages

Computers

• Rocks Cluster Distribution, a Linux distribution for cluster computing
• ROCK Linux software for building customized Linux distributions
• Rock processor, a microprocessor currently in development by Sun Microsystems

Other

• Rock Music
• The Rock, an instrumental track from The Who's 1973 album, Quadrophenia.
• Rocks (album), a 1976 album by Aerosmith
• Rocks (song), a song by Primal Scream
• Rock, slang for a basketball
• Rock (manga character), a character in Osamu Tezuka's manga
• Rock, the name of Mega Man in the Japanese versions of the games
• Rock Lee, a character from the anime and manga series Naruto
• The Rock (film), a 1996 motion picture about the Alcatraz prison
• Nathaniel "Rock" Adams, a character from the Soul Calibur series of games
• Rock, another name for Crack cocaine
• Rock, another name for Crystal methamphetamine
• Rock, an islet, usually a small island
• Rock Howard, a character from the Fatal Fury and King of Fighters series of games
• ROCK1, a human gene
• Rock, the mascot of Rock Island High School, Rock Island, Illinois
• "The Rock", short for Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad

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