stock-still

See also: stock still

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Inversion of earlier still as a stock, from stock (“tree-trunk”).

Pronunciation
  • Audio (AU)(file)

Adjective

stock-still (not comparable)

  1. Very still; motionless.
    The team was stock-still in front of the stable.

Adverb

stock-still (not comparable)

  1. (idiomatic) Without motion.
    He lay stock-still among the bodies and blasted equipment.
    • 1897, Sam T. Clover, Paul Travers' Adventures:
      Paul stood stock still; then came a strong impulse to turn and run back.
    • 2019 June, Suzanne Nelson, A Tale Magnolious, New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, →ISBN, page 36:
      Now his fingertips were tapping in addition to his toe-bouncing, until soon his entire body was wibbling in jumping-bean fashion. “Old Mag, you say?” He peered around Nitty at Mag, and Mag took the opportunity to inspect his mask and goggles with her trunk. The boy quit wibbling, stood stock-still, and gulped.

Further reading
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