A rocking chair is a chair mounted on two curved pieces of wood called rockers that let it tilt smoothly back and forth. When you sit in a rocking chair and push gently with your feet, the curved rockers roll forward and back in a soothing rhythm.

Rocking chairs became popular in America in the 1700s and quickly spread to porches and living rooms. The gentle rocking motion can calm babies and help them fall asleep, which is why you'll often find rocking chairs in nurseries. Many people also find the rhythmic movement relaxing for themselves. It's common to see someone reading a book or knitting while rocking slowly on a front porch.

The motion can provide both pleasure and practical benefits. Some people feel it helps them think and concentrate. Some writers and inventors kept rocking chairs in their workspaces because the steady back-and-forth rhythm seemed to help them focus on difficult problems. President John F. Kennedy used a rocking chair to ease his chronic back pain.

The phrase rocking chair can also describe anything associated with old age or retirement, since rocking chairs are traditionally associated with elderly people relaxing. When someone jokes about their “rocking chair years,” they mean the time when they'll be old enough to sit back and take it easy.