rocky1

[rok-ee] /ˈrɒk i/
adjective, rockier, rockiest.
1.
full of or abounding in rocks.
2.
consisting of rock.
3.
rocklike:
wood with a rocky hardness.
4.
firm; steadfast:
rocky endurance.
5.
unfeeling; without sympathy or emotion:
my rocky heart.
Origin
1400-50; late Middle English; see rock1, -y1

rocky2

[rok-ee] /ˈrɒk i/
adjective, rockier, rockiest.
1.
inclined or likely to rock; tottering; shaky; unsteady.
2.
difficult or uncertain; full of hazards or obstacles:
a business with a rocky future.
3.
physically unsteady or weak, as from sickness.
Origin
1730-40; rock2 + -y1
Examples from the web for rocky
  • Much of the south comprises rocky plateaus carved by glaciers.
  • As our canoes float into the rocky shoal, the lilies seem to engulf us, the giant pale flowers reaching to our chins.
  • There was loveliness to rust, cracks in the road, and a texture to the rocky sidewalks.
  • And in any case, stellar wobbles give no clue as to whether a planet is barren and rocky or bursting with alien beasties.
  • They built their villages on the rocky slopes below.
  • Holt's four companions climbed a rocky cliff and searched the water for traces of him.
  • Beyond the river, the ground rises with rocky promontories protruding from the otherwise gentle tree-covered slope.
  • rocky planets are forming-and occasionally colliding-around a nearby star, scientists say.
  • Some experts thought they represented rocky debris made slippery by tiny bits of ice mixed with dirt.
  • Agaves are adapted to rocky, native soils and won't need amendments.
British Dictionary definitions for rocky

rocky1

/ˈrɒkɪ/
adjective rockier, rockiest
1.
consisting of or abounding in rocks: a rocky shore
2.
hard or unyielding: rocky determination
3.
hard like rock: rocky muscles
Derived Forms
rockily, adverb
rockiness, noun

rocky2

/ˈrɒkɪ/
adjective rockier, rockiest
1.
weak, shaky, or unstable
2.
(informal) (of a person) dizzy; sickly; nauseated
Derived Forms
rockily, adverb
rockiness, noun
Word Origin and History for rocky
adj.

"full of rocks," c.1400, from rock (n.1) + -y (2); "unsteady," 1737, from rock (v.1). Meaning "difficult, hard" is recorded from 1873, and may represent a bit of both.

The Rocky Mountains so called by 1802, translating French Montagnes Rocheuses, first applied to the Canadian Rockies. "The name is not directly self-descriptive but is an approximate translation of the name of the former Native American people here known as the Assiniboin .... The mountains are in fact not noticeably rocky" [Room]. Bright notes that "These Indians were called /assiniipwaan/, lit. 'stone Sioux', by their Cree (Algonkian) neighbors".

Slang definitions & phrases for rocky

rocky

adjective
  1. Drunk
  2. Weak and unsteady; groggy; woozy: came back to work, looking pale and rocky (1895+)
  3. Difficult; trying; tough: That was a very rocky time for our family (1873+)