stocks
| Noun | 1. |  stocks - a wooden instrument of punishment on a post with holes for the neck and hands; offenders were locked in and so exposed to public scornSynonyms: pillory |
STOCKS, crim. law. A machine commonly made of wood, with boles in it, in
which to confine persons accused of or guilty of a crime.
2. It was used either to confine unruly offenders by way of security,
or convicted criminals for punishment.
3. This barbarous punishment has been generally abandoned in the United
States.