gravelly

[grav-uh-lee]

adjective

1. of, like, or abounding in gravel.

2. harsh and grating.

   a gravelly voice.

gravelly

/ ˈɡrævəlɪ /

adjective

1. consisting of or abounding in gravel

2. of or like gravel

3. (esp of a voice) harsh and grating

Other Word Forms

• ungravelly adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of gravelly¹

First recorded in 1350–1400, gravelly is from the Middle English word gravelli. See gravel, -y ¹

Example Sentences

She dropped into her gravelly Cookie Monster growl for the answer: “Brown food tastes good.”

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On ballads like Tonight's the Night and First Cut is the Deepest, he found new ways around the melodies, accommodating the cracks and crevices that have appeared in his famously gravelly voice.

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In one clip, he uses it to deliver a gravelly, reverent takedown of Chuck E. Cheese: “A casino for the juice box crowd, where the ATM is your dad and the mouse always wins.”

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Those same influences reverberate throughout her eclectic albums — unmistakably threaded through with her gravelly, gorgeous voice.

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“It just felt kismet,” he says with a gravelly lilt.

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Related Words

• discordant 
• gruff 
• harsh 
• raucous 
• throaty