Definition of "rock-ribbed" [rock-ribbed]

• Having rocks or rock outcroppings; rocky. (adjective)
• Firm and unyielding, especially with regard to one's principles, loyalties, or beliefs: a rock-ribbed conservative. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Rick Perry's surge in the polls has shaken up the Republican presidential race, knocking Mitt Romney from his perch as the GOP front-runner and emboldening Republican voters who say 2012 is the year a rock-ribbed conservative can win the White House."
• "The bad news is that Gowdy is a rock-ribbed conservative from the home state of infamous District overlord Rep. John L. McMillan D."
• "It wasn't until Republicans returned to rock-ribbed conservative principles in the 2010 midterms that the GOP regained its footing, and winning back control of the House proved the primacy of principles."