Meaning & use
Stonehenge
Last updated
Meanings
proper nounproper
A prehistoric monument in southern England made of very large standing stones arranged in a circle.
Grammar: Used like a name; no article and no plural: Stonehenge attracts visitors.
Patterns
- visit Stonehenge
- Stonehenge is in + place
- the stones at Stonehenge
Stonehenge is one of the most famous ancient sites in Britain.
Every summer, thousands of people travel to Stonehenge to watch the sunrise.
Historians still argue about why Stonehenge was built.
nouncountablefigurative
A mysterious or impressive arrangement of large stones, especially one that seems ancient.
Grammar: Used figuratively, often in comparisons: a stonehenge of glass.
Patterns
- a stonehenge of something
- like a stonehenge
The abandoned factory looked like a stonehenge of rusting metal.
The artist built a stonehenge of old televisions in the gallery.
Common combinations
- visit Stonehenge
- We visited Stonehenge on our trip to England.
- the stones at Stonehenge
- The stones at Stonehenge are huge and heavy.
- Stonehenge is located in
- Stonehenge is located in Wiltshire, in the south of England.
- ancient monument like Stonehenge
- They discovered an ancient monument like Stonehenge in the field.
Synonyms and how they differ
- megalith
- A megalith is a single large stone, while Stonehenge is the whole site.
- monument
- A monument is any structure that honors a person or event; Stonehenge is a specific prehistoric monument.
Commonly confused: Stonehenge or Stonehedge?
Stonehenge vs Stonehedge
A common misspelling. The correct spelling ends in -henge, not -hedge.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'Stonehenge' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Stonehenge is a proper noun and takes no article, so 'Stonehenge is a famous ancient site' is correct. 'The Stonehenge' is wrong because proper nouns like this do not use 'the'. 'Stonehenge are' is wrong because the name is singular. 'A Stonehenge' is wrong because it is not a countable common noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “Stonehenge”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.