Skip to main content
stony

stony

1 3.9
Very hard and not easy to break
  • adjective
  • /ˈstoʊni/
translation icon : duro
  • Despite the bad news, she kept a stony demeanor, showing no signs of distress.
  • stony face
  • stony hard

Examples

  • The judge maintained a stony expression as he delivered the sentence.

  • As always, his thin face was stony.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • His face went stony with stubbornness.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • He coached football at school, and he had the stony features of a man used to hiding his strategy.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Then he strode up the stairs, a set of his broad shoulders which spoke of some grim and stony determination.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • Except for a slight puffing of his cheeks when the nurse breathed into his mouth, his stony gray face remained as rigid as that of a statue.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • The soldier marched forward with a stony resolve, determined to complete his mission.

Synonyms

hard
vsstony
764 1.0

Firm and not easy to bend, break, or pierce

is more intense, meaning exceptionally unyielding rather than merely firm
solid
vsstony
325 1.0

Firm and hard so it keeps its shape, not liquid

is stronger, stressing extreme unyielding hardness rather than general firmness
rock hard
vsstony
11 3.2

Very hard and solid like stone

is similar but highlights hardness by a direct mineral comparison
granitic
vsstony
7.8

Very firm and unwilling to change in attitude or mind

is mainly about physical hardness rather than personality
granitelike
vsstony
6.8

Very hard and strong like granite

is more about literal extreme hardness in material objects
stonelike
vsstony
5.1

Very hard and like stone in look or feel

emphasizes extreme, unyielding hardness rather than just appearance
rocklike
vsstony
4.0

Hard and solid like a rock

is the specific comparison that stresses unyielding mineral like hardness
petrous
vsstony
  • Specialized
9.9

A very hard, thick part of bone that feels like stone

is broader, applying to any very hard material or surface
4.3

Very strong and not likely to break or change

is the literal physical sense used for actual materials rather than metaphor

Antonyms

552 1.0

Easily pressed when you touch it

3.9

Soft and easy to press or bend under weight

Compounds

stony coral
  • Specialized
1 6.0

A sea animal that makes a hard skeleton and builds reefs

stony-broke
  • Informal
1 9.3

With no money at all

How Hard

rock hard
11 3.2
stony
1 3.9
hard
764 1.0
firm
30 1.0
soft
552 1.0

Surface Forms

stony positive

Morphology

stony = stone (transparent) = stone + y

Adjectival '-y' denotes 'like or characteristic of stone', so the extension to 'hard or unyielding' is a straightforward metaphorical inference.

Etymology

Stony comes from stone, which is very hard, so stony can mean 'very hard' or unyielding, like rock or granite.