stock

laughing stock: seelaughing.

lock, stock, and barrel: seelock.

on the stocks in construction or preparation.

☞ During construction, a ship is supported on a frame or scaffolding known as the stocks.

put (or take) stock in believe or have faith in.

☞ The earliest example so far recorded of this expression is by Mark Twain in Galaxy (1870): 'The “chance" theory…is… calculated to inflict…pecuniary loss upon any community that takes stock in it'.

take stock

1 make an inventory of the merchandise in a shop.

2 review or make an assessment of a particular situation, typically as a prelude to making a decision.