pebble

Etymology

From Middle English pibel (also in pibleston), from Old English papolstān (“pebble-stone”), from Old English *papol, *pyppel, *pæbbel of unknown origin + Old English stān. Compare Albanian popël.

noun

1. A small stone, especially one rounded by the action of water.
2. (geology) A particle from 4 to 64 mm in diameter, following the Wentworth scale.
3. (curling) A small droplet of water intentionally sprayed on the ice that cause irregularities on the surface.
4. Transparent and colourless rock crystal.
   Brazilian pebble
5. A form of slow-burning gunpowder in large cubical grains.

verb

1. (transitive) To pave with pebbles.
2. (transitive, curling) To deposit water droplets on the ice.
   to pebble the ice between games
3. (transitive) To give (leather) a rough appearance with small rounded prominences.
4. (transitive, graph theory) To place a pebble at (a vertex of a graph) according to certain rules; see pebble game.