Definition, synonyms and related words
The motion of something that rocks.
"The old chair has a gentle rocking motion as I sit in it."
In plain English: Rocking is an old-fashioned way of describing someone who acts silly, foolishly confident, or out of touch with reality.
"The rocking chair creaked softly with every gentle movement."
present participle of rock
"The baby fell asleep while rocking gently in her mother's arms."
In plain English: To rock is to move back and forth gently, often while sitting down.
"The baby fell asleep while I was rocking her in my arms."
Shaking, swaying or moving back and forth.
"The old boat was rocking gently in the calm harbor waters."
In plain English: Rocking describes something that moves back and forth gently, like a boat on calm water.
"The old rocking chair was gently swaying back and forth in the corner."
Usage: Use the adjective form to describe objects physically swaying back and forth, such as a rocking chair in motion. Avoid confusing this with "rocking" as an action verb when you specifically need to label the state or quality of movement itself.
The word rocking is formed by adding the suffix -ing to the noun rock. It describes the action of moving back and forth or from side to side.