stone-still
English
editEtymology 1
editFrom Middle English stone-stille, stonstyll, stonstyl, stane still, equivalent to stone + still (adjective).
Adjective
editstone-still (comparative more stone-still, superlative most stone-still)
- As still as a stone; perfectly still or silent; motionless
- 2011, Suraya Sadeed, Damien Lewis, Forbidden Lessons in a Kabul Guesthouse:
- Sekander stared out of the window with a stone-still face.
- 2015, Elisha Cohn, Still Life:
- She lay Stone-still, and the long darkness flow'd away With muffled pulses.
- 2015, Sara Humphreys, Vampires Never Cry Wolf:
- She remained stone-still, ready for anything, sending her heightened senses in search of who or what was encroaching on her personal space.
Etymology 2
editFrom Middle English ston-stille, stone-stille, stonstil, stane-still, equivalent to stone + still (adverb).
Adverb
editstone-still (comparative more stone-still, superlative most stone-still)
- In a stone-still manner
- 2011, Jean Craighead George, How to Talk to Your Animals:
- Around 6:00 A.M., after an entire night of abuse, the omega walked to the ridge and stood stone-still.