runestone

R1U1N1E1S1T1O1N1E1
US/ˈɹunˌstoʊn/

noun

An ancient monument consisting of a typically raised stone with a runic inscription.

OriginEnglish stone ← Middle English ston ← Old English stān →
RareScrabble 9
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounrunestone (plural runestones)

plural runestones

  1. archaeologyAn ancient monument consisting of a typically raised stone with a runic inscription.
  2. A small tile-shaped stone or tablet with a single rune inscribed on it, used for divinatory and esoteric purposes.

Origin

  1. Proto-Celtic*rūnābor.?
  2. Proto-Germanic*rūnō
  3. Proto-Germanic*rūnǭ
  4. Proto-Norseᚱᚢᚾᛟ (runo)
  5. Old Norserún
  6. Englishrune
  7. Proto-Indo-European*steh₂-
  8. Proto-Indo-European*steyh₂-
  9. Proto-Indo-European*stóyh₂nos
  10. Proto-Germanic*stainaz
  11. Proto-West Germanic*stain
  12. Old Englishstān
  13. Middle Englishston
  14. Englishstone
  15. Englishrunestone

From rune + stone.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan pedra rúnica
  • pedra rúnicastone with a runic inscription
Danish runesten
  • runestenstone with a runic inscription
Dutch runensteen
  • runensteenstone with a runic inscription
Esperanto runŝtono
  • runŝtonostone with a runic inscription
Estonian ruunikivi
  • ruunikivistone with a runic inscription
Finnish riimukivi
  • riimukivistone with a runic inscription
French pierre runique
  • pierre runiquestone with a runic inscription
German Runenstein
  • Runensteinstone with a runic inscription
Hebrew אֶבֶן רוּנוֹת
  • אֶבֶן רוּנוֹתstone with a runic inscription
Indonesian batu Rune
  • batu Runestone with a runic inscription
Italian pietra runica
  • pietra runicastone with a runic inscription
Lithuanian runų akmuo
  • runų akmuostone with a runic inscription
Norwegian Bokmål runestein, runesten
  • runesteinstone with a runic inscription
  • runestenstone with a runic inscription
Polish kamień runiczny
  • kamień runicznystone with a runic inscription
Portuguese pedra rúnica
  • pedra rúnicastone with a runic inscription
Russian руни́ческий ка́мень
  • руни́ческий ка́мень (runíčeskij kámenʹ)stone with a runic inscription
Spanish piedra rúnica (cf. estela rúnica f)
  • piedra rúnica (cf. estela rúnica f)stone with a runic inscription
Swedish runsten
  • runstenstone with a runic inscription
Ukrainian руні́чний ка́мінь
  • руні́чний ка́мінь (runíčnyj káminʹ)stone with a runic inscription
Cite this entry
APA

runestone. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/runestone

MLA

“runestone.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/runestone. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “runestone,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/runestone.

Source: runestone on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.