Words (6/27/25)
Origins and evolution of the meaning of words has always interested me. Learning Spanish led to further intrigue, as I became more aware of Latin-based origins that made their way into English.
Some English words seem too condensed, where multiple words in Spanish split out the distinctions a bit more elegantly. For example, (I) “am” in English can be “soy” or “estoy” in Spanish, depending on the circumstance.
Other words, that seem to have multiple relatively unrelated uses in English also have that distinction in Spanish. The English word “hard” for instance, can mean both a solid, rigid substance, or something difficult, which might be somewhat related abstractly. The Spanish word “duro” (think durable) also carries the same multiple meanings, and more.
The English word “stock”, however really baffles me by its numerous seemingly disparate meanings. Some can mentally be connected, but the relationship of others doesn’t seem apparent. Look at this list from a Google search:
noun
noun: stock; plural noun: stocks; noun: Brompton stock; noun: night-scented stock; plural noun: the stocks
- 1.
the goods or merchandise kept on the premises of a business or warehouse and available for sale or distribution.
"the store has a very low turnover of stock"
Similar:
merchandise
goods
wares
items/articles for sale
commodities
vendibles
o a supply or quantity of something accumulated or available for future use.
"I need to replenish my stock of wine"
Similar:
store
supply
stockpile
reserve
hoard
cache
reservoir
accumulation
quantity
pile
heap
load
fund
bank
pool
mine
repertoire
repertory
inventory
collection
selection
assortment
variety
range
amassment
o farm animals such as cattle, pigs, and sheep, bred and kept for their meat or milk; livestock.
"all the stock were housed and fed in sheds"
Similar:
livestock
farm animals
cattle
beasts
cows
sheep
pigs
horses
oxen
goats
flocks
herds
o short for rolling stock.
Similar:
rolling stock
trains
locomotives
carriages
wagons
machinery
equipment
apparatus
appliances
implements
o photographic film that has not been exposed or processed.
noun: film stock; plural noun: film stocks
o (in some card games) the cards that have not yet been dealt, left on the table to be drawn.
- 2.
the capital raised by a business or corporation through the issue and subscription of shares.
"between 1982 and 1986 the value of the company's stock rose by 86%"
Similar:
capital
funds
assets
property
o shares of stock of a particular company as held by an individual or group as an investment.
"she owned $3000 worth of stock"
o the shares of a particular company, type of company, or industry.
"blue-chip stocks"
Similar:
investments
shares
holdings
securities
equities
bonds
portfolio
o securities issued by the government in fixed units with a fixed rate of interest.
modifier noun: stock; modifier noun: government stock
"government gilt-edged stock"
o a person's reputation or popularity.
"I felt I was right, but my stock was low with this establishment"
Similar:
reputation
standing
status
repute
position
- 3.
liquid made by cooking bones, meat, fish, or vegetables slowly in water, used as a basis for the preparation of soup, gravy, or sauces.
"a pint of chicken stock"
Similar:
broth
bouillon
o the raw material from which a specified commodity can be manufactured.
"the fat can be used as soap stock"
- 4.
a person's ancestry or line of descent.
"her mother was of French stock"
Similar:
descent
ancestry
origin(s)
parentage
pedigree
lineage
line
line of descent
heritage
birth
extraction
background
family
blood
bloodline
genealogy
beginnings
filiation
stirps
o a breed, variety, or population of an animal or plant.
"the vineyards were plowed up and replanted using different vine stock"
- 5.
the trunk or woody stem of a living tree or shrub, especially one into which a graft(scion) is inserted.
Similar:
trunk
tree trunk
stem
stalk
caudex
o the perennial part of a herbaceous plant, especially a rhizome.
- 6.
a herbaceous European plant that is widely cultivated for its fragrant flowers, which are typically lilac, pink, or white.
- 7.
HISTORICAL
an instrument of punishment consisting of an adjustable wooden structure with holes for securing a person's feet and hands, in which criminals were locked and exposed to public ridicule or assault.
- 8.
the part of a rifle or other firearm to which the barrel and firing mechanism are attached, held against one's shoulder when firing the gun.
Similar:
handle
butt
haft
grip
shaft
shank
helve
o the crosspiece of an anchor.
o the handle of something such as a whip or fishing rod.
o short for headstock (sense 1).
o short for tailstock.
- 9.
a band of white material tied like a cravat and worn as a part of formal horse-riding dress.
o a piece of black material worn under a clerical collar.
- 10.
a frame used to support a ship or boat out of water, especially when under construction.
adjective
adjective: stock
- 1.
(of a product or type of product) usually kept in stock and thus regularly available for sale.
"25 percent off stock items"
- 2.
(of a phrase or expression) so regularly used as to be automatic or hackneyed.
"“Two weeks” was the stock reply"
o denoting a conventional character type or situation that recurs in a particular genre of literature, theater, or film.
"the stock characters in every cowboy movie"
Similar:
usual
routine
predictable
set
standard
staple
customary
familiar
conventional
traditional
stereotyped
clichéd
hackneyed
unoriginal
derivative
formulaic
ready-made
well worn
overused
overworked
worn out
banal
trite
platitudinous
tired
run-of-the-mill
commonplace
corny
old hat
hacky
Opposite:
original
unusual
o denoting or relating to cinematic footage that can be regularly used in different productions, typically that of outdoor scenes used to add realism to a production shot in an indoor set.
verb
verb: stock; 3rd person present: stocks; past tense: stocked; past participle: stocked; gerund or present participle: stocking
- 1.
have or keep a supply of (a particular product or type or product) available for sale.
"most supermarkets now stock a range of organic produce"
Similar:
sell
market
supply
keep
keep in stock
have
have for sale
carry
handle
offer
provide
trade in
deal in
o provide or fill with goods, items, or a supply of something.
"I must stock up the fridge"
Similar:
supply
provide
equip
furnish
provision
o amass supplies of something, typically for a particular occasion or purpose.
"I'm stocking up for Christmas" (Not to mention Christmas stockings hung by the fireplace!)
Similar:
fill
fill up
load
restock
replenish
amass supplies of
obtain a store of
buy up
stockpile
lay in
put away
put aside
put down
store up
collect
gather
accumulate
hoard
cache
squirrel away
salt away
stash away
- 2.
fit (a rifle or other firearm) with a stock.
"it was a fine gun which he forged, stocked, and completed himself"
This may be why it is so hard / difficult / … to learn English!
Dave Drozek with
Ruminations from Retirement
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