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• scone
  scone

  noun

  a small, light, biscuitlike quick bread made of oatmeal, wheat flour, barley meal, or the like.
• Scone
  Scone

  noun

  a village in central Scotland: site of coronation of Scottish kings until 1651.

scone

¹ American  

[skohn, skon] / skoʊn, skɒn /

noun

• scones
  plural

1. a small, light, biscuitlike quick bread made of oatmeal, wheat flour, barley meal, or the like.

2. biscuit.

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Scone ² American  

[skoon, skohn] / skun, skoʊn /

noun

1. a village in central Scotland: site of coronation of Scottish kings until 1651.

2. Stone of, a stone, formerly at Scone, Scotland, upon which Scottish kings sat at coronation, now placed beneath the coronation chair in Westminster Abbey.

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scone ¹ British  

noun

1. a light plain doughy cake made from flour with very little fat, cooked in an oven or (esp originally) on a griddle, usually split open and buttered

2. a slang word for head

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adjective

1. slang

   1. angry

   2. insane

Scone ² British  

/ skuːn /

noun

1. a parish in Perth and Kinross, E Scotland, consisting of the two villages of New Scone and Old Scone, formerly the site of the Pictish capital and the stone upon which medieval Scottish kings were crowned. The stone was removed to Westminster Abbey by Edward I in 1296; it was returned to Scotland in 1996 and placed in Edinburgh Castle. Scone Palace was rebuilt in the Neo-Gothic style in the 19th century

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• scones
  plural

Etymology

Origin of scone

1505–15; shortened < earlier Dutch schoonbrot fine bread, white bread. See sheen, bread

Explanation

Order a scone at a bakery and you'll get a slightly sweet, rich baked good made with baking soda. Scones are traditionally baked in a large circle and cut into triangular pieces. A scone is like a quick bread, leavened with baking soda instead of yeast and baked on a sheet or griddle. They often contain currants, raisins, or other fruit. In the U.S., scones are dryer and more crumbly than in the U.K., (where they might call American scones "rock cakes"). Scone comes from Scottish, a shortened version of the Dutch schoon brood, "fine bread," and its Middle Dutch roots, schoon, "bright," and broot, "bread."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scone Scone scones

"The scone is a British classic and so is the Welsh cake so they are both in the same bracket," said Williams.

From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026

The cheddar scone was my favorite bite of the visit, striking a perfect balance between rich and sharp.

From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2026

Kill a dozen birds with one homemade scone, if you will.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 7, 2025

“I’m an aspiring novelist, and it made me feel like a book character,” Brown says while offering a scone in her cozy living room.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2025

Colin leaves to retrieve the scone, and I quickly run my hands along the bar, feeling for a piece of cutlery or any sort of lock-popping instrument.

From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin

The 150kg object, also known as the Stone of Scone, was taken from Scotland during the Wars of Independence.

From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2025

When Charles' son was crowned as Charles II with the support of the Presbyterian Covenanters at Scone in 1651, Cromwell invaded Scotland, determined to regain control and to destroy the Scottish Honours in the process.

From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2023

The Fisher Scone, notes Erickson, “has outlived the very brand it served to promote.”

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 22, 2023

Underneath the seat was a sacred slab known as the Stone of Scone, on which ancient Scottish kings were crowned.

From Washington Times ● May 6, 2023

Touched by his genius, the names Dunsinnane and Birnam, lying close to Scone, are luminous points on the map, upon which the eye loves to linger.

From A Short History of England, Ireland and Scotland by Mary Platt Parmele

The royals then attended a garden party at the British embassy, with cucumber sandwiches and scones on the menu.

From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026

Her latest cookbook, “108 Asian Cookies: Not-Too-Sweet Treats from a Third-Culture Kitchen,” features a handful of cookie recipes that call for soy sauce, like her fudgy chocolate chip cookies, kimchi scones and pillowy whoopie pies.

From Salon ● Dec. 13, 2025

Heading into the holidays, she is working on hiring four extra employees to help with an expected influx of customers seeking scones and other pastries for holiday gifts, celebrations and comfort.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 11, 2025

Certainly, I think given the amount of pastry I consume and have consumed in my lifetime, I thought that Mary O’s Irish Soda Bread scones were kind of a revelation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2025

I cannot for the life of me remember what we talked about, but I can still taste the delicious warm scones that she brought out to me in the afternoons.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Related Words

• bread
• doughnut
• muffin
• pastry