present participle or gerund
Moving a person or thing slowly from one side to the other and back again.
She is rocking the baby to sleep.
The boat is rocking in the waves.
American English
How to pronounce rocking
verb · noun · adjectiveB1Very common word
RAHkihng
/ˈɹɑ.kɪŋ/
2 syllables · Stress the first syllable.
Form of rock
Rocking can be a verb form, a noun for the movement, or an adjective describing movement or an energetic event.
Moving a person or thing slowly from one side to the other and back again.
Practice out loudMeanings & examples
gerund noun
The act of moving slowly from one side to the other and back again.
The gentle rocking calmed the baby.
The rocking of the cradle made the baby sleepy.
participle adjective
Moving slowly from one side to the other and back again.
The rocking chair creaked gently.
The rocking cradle soothed the baby.
Good to know
In rocking chair and rocking cradle, rocking describes a type of movement, not rock music.
present participle or gerund
Shaking a person, place, or thing strongly, sometimes causing damage or a strong emotional effect.
The earthquake is rocking the city.
The scandal is rocking the company.
Useful expressions
a style of popular music that developed from blues and other music
He grew up listening to rock and roll.
to cause problems or disturb a calm situation
Don't rock the boat before the vote.
to play or enjoy rock music with a lot of energy
The band rocked out all night.
Related words & forms
The final k doubles before -ed and -ing: rocked, rocking.