stock photo
noun
plural stock photos
: a photographic image of a generic subject (such as a person, object, or location) that is kept for later use
Prevailing wisdom among dealers is that online shoppers prefer real photos of new vehicles in inventory over stock photos from the manufacturer and others.—
David Barkholz
David Barkholz[Suzanne] Rodriguez has more than a decade of experience in digital advertising and professional photography. Stock photos often can be found on the websites of small businesses, but custom photos provide a more accurate characterization of the firm, she said.—Kevin Oklobzija
Kevin OklobzijaWhen the National Enquirer needed a close-up photo of a snail for one of its … stories, it didn't send a phalanx of photographers out into the garden with cameras in hand. Instead, it called on a small stock photo service in Chatham that specializes in pictures of animals and nature …—Michael Farrell
Michael FarrellExamples of stock photo in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Anyone could share their NIL and, in effect, put their digital double in the equivalent of a stock photo library.
—Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 15 Oct. 2025
The Oregon Republican Party deleted a social media post that used images from South America in the context of protests in Portland, saying a volunteer created the graphic using stock photos.
—Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025
One client, a law firm, stopped posting generic stock photos and instead created short educational and informative videos answering the exact questions their prospects were Googling.
—Tony Pec, Forbes.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Another photographer reached out to The Verge and claimed that none of the five photos were taken using the Phone (3); they were all licensed by Nothing via the stock photo platform Stills.
—PC Magazine, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stock photo
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Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 15 Oct. 2025
The Oregon Republican Party deleted a social media post that used images from South America in the context of protests in Portland, saying a volunteer created the graphic using stock photos.
—Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025
One client, a law firm, stopped posting generic stock photos and instead created short educational and informative videos answering the exact questions their prospects were Googling.
—Tony Pec, Forbes.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Another photographer reached out to The Verge and claimed that none of the five photos were taken using the Phone (3); they were all licensed by Nothing via the stock photo platform Stills.
—PC Magazine, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stock photo
Cite this Entry
“Stock photo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stock%20photo. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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