holystone
English · Thesaurus
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holystone
- /ˈhəʊl.ɪ.stəʊn/ UK
- /ˈhoʊl.i.stoʊn/ US
Where it comes from
Uncertain, but equivalent to holy + stone. As an amulet, probably from holey (“having a hole”). As a scouring stone, variously derived from holey, from the amulet, from its association with Sunday cleaning, from its users' adoption of a kneeling position similar to prayer, and (least likely) from their original provision by raiding graveyards for tombstones.
noun holystones
-
A piece of soft sandstone used for scouring the wooden decks of ships, usually with sand and seawater.
Similar: bible
- A stone with a naturally-formed hole, used by Yorkshiremen for good luck.
verb holystones · holystoning · holystoned
- To use a holystone. Six days shalt thou labour and do all thou art able, And on the seventh—holystone the decks and scrape the cable.
Translations
Every language
noun block of soft sandstone used for scrubbing
| Русский | песча́ник pesčánik |
|---|---|
| עברית | אֶבֶן מֵרוּק éven merúk |
verb to scrub the decks with a holystone
| עברית | קִרְצֵף kirtséf |
|---|
Talk about this word "holystone." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/holystone. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. holystone. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/holystone "holystone." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/holystone.Cite this
@misc{holystone_2026,
title = {holystone},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/holystone},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
