stockpiles

IPA/ˈstɒk.paɪl/
KK[stˈɑkpˌaɪlz]IPA/ˈstɑːk.paɪl/

stockpiles — noun

  • stockpilessingular
  • stockpilesesplural

1. a big collection of essential things — such as food, medicine, or weapons — save

1.nounB2
Definition

a big collection of essential things — such as food, medicine, or weapons — saved for possible future need, especially during emergencies or shortages.

Example

The government keeps a large stockpile of rice for times when the harvest is poor.

collocation: stockpile of rice

The hospital's stockpile of face masks was gone after just three days.

Common collocations
  • build up a stockpile
  • maintain a stockpile
  • a stockpile of weapons
  • a stockpile of food
  • a stockpile of medical supplies
  • emergency stockpile
  • nuclear stockpile
Synonyms
  • reserve

    more general term; can be money, energy, or supplies, not necessarily a large physical heap

  • hoard

    more negative tone, suggesting secrecy or greed, whereas stockpile sounds planned and practical

  • store

    less specific about quantity; a store can be any amount kept for later

Antonyms
  • shortage

    a situation where there is too little of something, opposite of having a stockpile

Grammar Patterns

stockpiles + of + noun (weapons/food/supplies)

a/the stockpile + of + noun

Usage Note

Almost always used in the plural form (stockpiles) when referring to large stored amounts. Frequently appears with of to specify what is stored.

Common Mistakes

The family keeps a stockpile of money for emergencies.
The family keeps an emergency fund for emergencies.
stockpile is used for physical goods (food, supplies, weapons), not money.

stockpiles — verb

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

Both stockpile and store up describe gathering supplies for future use, but stockpile carries a sense of deliberate, large-scale planning — often by governments, companies, or organised groups — while store up is more casual and personal (e.g. storing up vegetables from a garden). Hoard adds a negative connotation of secrecy or selfishness; someone hoards because they fear scarcity and do not want others to get the same items. Amass is the broadest term, working for both concrete goods and abstract wealth (amass a fortune, amass data). In a sentence: 'The government stockpiled vaccines before flu season'; 'The old man hoarded newspapers in every room'; 'She stored up firewood for the cabin trip.'

stockpile ↗hoard ↗store up ↗amass ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • in case of emergency
  • for future use
  • against a shortage
  • for the winter

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishLatinEnglish

The word stockpile is formed by combining stock (meaning 'store' or 'supply', from Old English stocc 'trunk, post' — later evolving to mean 'supply of goods') and pile (from Latin pila 'pillar, heap'). It first appeared in English in the early 20th century, gaining wide use during World War II to describe the strategic reserves of weapons and supplies that countries built up for the war effort.

First known use

1872

1872, in the meaning defined above Verb