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rocky

Etymology and origin of the English word rocky

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English has two adjectives spelled rocky: one meaning full of rocks, from rock, stone, and one meaning unsteady, from rock, to sway.[1][2][3]

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈɹɒki/; /ˈɹɑki/ (US)[4]

rocky1 full of rocks

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
15th century

Etymology

It is Middle English rokky, formed from rokke, rock, and -y.[1][2][3] Earlier Middle English had rochi (about 1300), from French roche.[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Full of rocks, consisting of rock: the 15th century in the OED and MWU, the late 15th century in Etymonline.[5][2][1]

Semantic evolution

Of the heart, flinty or unfeeling, is from before 1586, and firm as a rock, steadfast, from 1622.[5] The Rocky Mountains were so called by 1802, translating French Montagnes Rocheuses, first used of the Canadian Rockies;[1][5] according to Room, the name is an approximate translation of that of the Assiniboine people, whom the Cree called stone Sioux.[1] The Rockies is from 1827.[5]

Timeline

  • c. 1300 – rochi.[1]
  • 15th century – rokky, full of rocks.[5]
  • 1622 – steadfast.[5]
  • 1802 – Rocky Mountains.[1][5]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Consisting of or full of rocks.
  2. Like rock; firm or hard.

Word family

  • rockiness

rocky2 unsteady

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1737

Etymology

It is formed from the verb rock, to sway, and -y.[1][2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Unsteady, tottering: 1737.[1][2][3]

Semantic evolution

Difficult or hard, as in a rocky start, is recorded from 1873 and may represent a bit of both words.[1] SOED notes that this sense is sometimes interpreted as a figurative use of rocky, full of rocks.[3] Feeling weak or unwell is a colloquial use.[6][7]

Timeline

  • 1737 – unsteady.[1]
  • 1873 – difficult.[1]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Unsteady or likely to fail: a rocky marriage.
  2. (informal) Weak or dizzy; unwell.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  2. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ a b c d e Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  7. ^ Soanes, Catherine; Stevenson, Angus, eds. (2004), Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 11th ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
Cite this entry

“Rocky.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/rocky. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

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