pebble

[ peb-uhl ]

/ ˈpɛb əl /

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See synonyms for: pebble / pebbles on Thesaurus.com

noun

a small, rounded stone, especially one worn smooth by the action of water.

Also called pebble leather . leather that has been given a granulated surface.

any granulated or crinkled surface, especially of a textile.

a transparent colorless rock crystal used for the lenses of eyeglasses.

a lens made from this crystal.

verb (used with object), peb·bled, peb·bling.

to prepare (leather) so as to have a granulated surface.

to pelt with or as with pebbles.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of pebble

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English pibbil, puble, pobble; compare Old English pæbbel (in placenames), papel-, popel- (in compounds); phonological relations unclear

OTHER WORDS FROM pebble

un·peb·bled, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH pebble

boulder, cobblestone, granule, pebble , rock, stone

Words nearby pebble

peau de soie, peavey, peavy, pea weevil, peba, pebble, pebble dash, pebble garden, pebble heater, pebbling, pebbly

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use pebble in a sentence

NASA scientists confirmed Wednesday that the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft successfully made contact with an asteroid a day earlier, touching the surface for six seconds and collecting dust and pebbles from its surface.
NASA reaches out and touches an asteroid 320 million kilometers away|Eric Berger|October 21, 2020|Ars Technica
The instrument tapped the asteroid lightly for six seconds, and released a burst of nitrogen gas to disturb the surface dust and pebbles.
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx survived its risky mission to grab a piece of an asteroid|Lisa Grossman|October 21, 2020|Science News
Once there, it briefly made contact with the ground in an attempt to collect some rocky pebbles and dust before safely flying away.
OSIRIS-REx survived its touchdown on asteroid Bennu—now we wait to see if it got a sample|Neel Patel|October 21, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Still, the worry remains that the boulders might pose a safety hazard for the sampling system, which was designed to handle pebbles only a few centimeters across.
The asteroid Bennu’s brittle boulders may make grabbing a sample easier|Lisa Grossman|October 8, 2020|Science News

Organic material is fragile, and scientists have previously caught the asteroid popping pebbles off into space, revealing its underlying material to the universe.
Local asteroid Bennu used to be filled with tiny rivers|Charlie Wood|October 8, 2020|Popular-Science
Pluck a pebble from a mountain and pretend the mountain is gone.
The Crazy Way Creationists Try To Explain Human Tails Without Evolution|Karl W. Giberson|June 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He can see a person supporting the anti-Pebble initiative and voting for a Republican ticket.
Can Dems Ride Pot High to Victory?|Alexandra Gutierrez|May 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The maze ends in an expansive Zen garden, complete with a pebble pool-pit and a vast mirror along one wall.
The Royal Academy Wants You to Finish This Artwork|Chloë Ashby|January 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Other key presenters included executives from Google, Microsoft, and start-ups like Pebble.
America’s Start-Up Silver Lining|Daniel Gross|October 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The Pebble comes close, but it still looks like a computer sitting on a wristband.
Apple’s iWatch Can’t Arrive Soon Enough|Winston Ross|August 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He turned away, tossing another pebble into the pool with a half-hearted motion of his arm.
The Envoy, Her|Horace Brown Fyfe
He chose a flat pebble and sent it skipping across the surface with a vicious snap of his wrist.
The Envoy, Her|Horace Brown Fyfe
Oar and keel, pebble and arrow, wind and current, are alike powerless to make a furrow that shall last.
A Charming Fellow, Volume II (of 3)|Frances Eleanor Trollope
His method was to take a pebble from a running stream, and grind it to powder with certain prayers.
The Cradle of Mankind|W.A. Wigram
And at that the elder brother cried out aloud, and turned the light of the pebble on the maid, and, lo!
The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson, Volume XXI|Robert Louis Stevenson

British Dictionary definitions for pebble

pebble

/ (ˈpɛbəl) /

noun

a small smooth rounded stone, esp one worn by the action of water
geology a rock fragment, often rounded, with a diameter of 4–64 mm and thus smaller than a cobble but larger than a granule

a transparent colourless variety of rock crystal, used for making certain lenses
such a lens

(modifier) informal (of a lens or of spectacles) thick, with a high degree of magnification or distortion

a grainy irregular surface, esp on leather
leather having such a surface

informal, mainly Australian a troublesome or obstinate person or animal

verb (tr)

to pave, cover, or pelt with pebbles

to impart a grainy surface to (leather)

Derived forms of pebble

pebbly, adjective

Word Origin for pebble

Old English papolstān, from papol- (perhaps of imitative origin) + stān stone

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for pebble

pebble

[ pĕb′əl ]

A rock fragment larger than a granule and smaller than a cobble. Pebbles have a diameter between 4 and 64 mm (0.16 and 2.56 inches) and are often rounded.

Other Idioms and Phrases with pebble

pebble

see not the only fish in the sea (pebble on the beach).

pebble

Origin of pebble

OTHER WORDS FROM pebble

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH pebble

Words nearby pebble

Words related to pebble

How to use pebble in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pebble

Derived forms of pebble

Word Origin for pebble

Scientific definitions for pebble

Other Idioms and Phrases with pebble