overwordExplorer
ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

rocky.

Abounding in, or full of, rocks; consisting of rocks.

5 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/ˈɹɒki/Received-Pronunciation[ˈɹʷɒki]Received-Pronunciation/ˈɹɑki/General-American[ˈɹʷɑki]General-American
  1. Abounding in, or full of, rocks; consisting of rocks.

    a rocky mountain    a rocky shore
  2. Like a rock; rigid, solid.

  3. Having a habitat around or on rocks.

  4. Not easily affected or impressed; stony; hard; obdurate; unfeeling.

    archaic · figuratively
    to have a rocky heart
  5. Having little or no money; stony broke.

    slang
Where this word comes from

From Middle English rokki, rokky (“rocky”), from rok, rokke (“rock; a rock or stone; large rock by a coast or in the sea; rocky outcrop on a mountain, cliff; castle, citadel, stronghold”) [and other forms] + -i (suffix forming adjectives). Rok, rokke are derived from: * Old English *rocc (“rock”); and * Anglo-Norman roc, roce, roque, and Old French roce, roke, roque, variants of roche (“rock”); both from Medieval Latin roca, rocca; further etymology uncertain, possibly of Celtic origin. The English word is analysable as rock + -y (suffix forming adjectives meaning ‘having the quality of’).

adj/ˈɹɒki/Received-Pronunciation[ˈɹʷɒki]Received-Pronunciation/ˈɹɑki/General-American[ˈɹʷɑki]General-American
  1. Easily rocked; unstable.

    The table was rocky, so we put a book under one leg.
  2. Encountering many problems; difficult, troubled; also, in danger or distress.

    figuratively
    Their relationship had weathered some rocky times, but they loved each other.
  3. Of a person: ill, or unsteady (for example, as a result of a shock).

    figuratively
Where this word comes from

From rock (“to move back and forth”) + -y (suffix forming adjectives meaning ‘having the quality of’). Rock is derived from Middle English rokken (“to move (something, such as a cradle) back and forth; to move or sway back and forth in an unstable manner; to go”) […], from Old English roccian (“to rock”), from Proto-Germanic *rukkōną (“to move; to move back and forth, rock”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₃rewk- (“to dig; to till (soil)”).

adj/ˈɹɒki/Received-Pronunciation[ˈɹʷɒki]Received-Pronunciation/ˈɹɑki/General-American[ˈɹʷɑki]General-American
  1. In the style of rock music.

    His new album is quite rocky.
Where this word comes from

From rock (“rock and roll music”) + -y (suffix forming adjectives meaning ‘having the quality of’).

FROM WORD TO NAME

Try it on your idea.

rocky has 5 characters. Say it out loud, try it alongside a description of your project, and see whether its meaning fits what you want to create.

rocky studiorocky workshello, rocky

These are naming prompts. Meanings and pronunciation can vary; existing brand and domain uses have not been checked.

Explore the name generator

A word with a source.

Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.