Woodstock

American  

[wood-stok] / ˈwʊdˌstɒk /

noun

1. a town in northeastern Illinois.

2. a rock music festival held in August of 1969 in Bethel, N.Y., a town near Woodstock, N.Y.

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Woodstock British  

/ ˈwʊdstɒk /

noun

1. a town in New York State, the site of a large rock festival in August 1969. Pop: 6253 (2003 est)

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Woodstock Cultural  

1. A village in New York state, where some 400,000 young people assembled in 1969 for a rock music festival.

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The size of the crowd and the prevalence of hippie dress and customs led to use of the term Woodstock nation to indicate the youth counterculture of the late 1960s.

The term Woodstock is now used loosely to mean a large, impromptu gathering.

Example Sentences

He died at his home in Woodstock, New York, on Monday afternoon according to a statement from his publicist, who called him "one of the most honored and influential figures in American music".

From BBC • May 26, 2026

“It was inspired by our dad, who used to read to us in Woodstock, Ill.,”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2026

Sir Stephen Fry, Hay Festival president, described the event as a "carnival of ideas", while former US President Bill Clinton once called it the "Woodstock of the mind".

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

The Dead’s long list of landmark festivals included the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, Woodstock in 1969 and the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen in 1973.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 11, 2026

I sat on the carpet for a while as Radar read to me more about New York, about the Catskill Mountains, about the nation’s capital, about the concert at Woodstock in 1969.

From "Paper Towns" by John Green