gravel

noun

grav·el | \ ˈgra-vəl

Definition of gravel

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 obsolete : sand

2a : loose rounded fragments of rock

b : a stratum or deposit of gravel also : a surface covered with gravel a gravel road

3 : small calculi in the kidneys and urinary bladder

gravel

verb

graveled or gravelled; graveling or gravelling\ ˈgrav-liŋ

, ˈgra-və- \

Definition of gravel (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

1 : to cover or spread with gravel

2a : perplex, confound

b : irritate, nettle disappointed … and graveled him a good deal— Mark Twain

gravel

adjective

Definition of gravel (Entry 3 of 3)

: gravelly sense 2 —used of the human voice

Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about gravel

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Examples of gravel in a Sentence

Verb

managed to gravel his opponent in the debate by focusing on atypical examples

Adjective

after his bout with laryngitis, he had a terribly gravel voice

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The car’s computer shows that moments before the crash, Jen had stopped on a gravel pullout 70 feet from the edge of the cliff, only to then accelerate. — Glamour, "Broken Harts, Episode 4: ‘My God, There’s Six of Them’," 31 Dec. 2018 Ahead, the white line disappears beneath even more gravel spilling out from a driveway. — James Lynch, Popular Mechanics, "What Happened When I Rode a Boosted Board From New York to Philadelphia," 27 Dec. 2018 The only roads would be gravel trails and desert tracks. — Stanley Stewart, Condé Nast Traveler, "Going Off-Grid in Namibia," 21 Dec. 2018 Goldfish Bowl Ornament Real aquarium gravel makes this fish bowl ornament extra convincing. — Heather Finn, Good Housekeeping, "Get the Whole Family Crafting With These Easy DIY Christmas Ornaments," 6 Dec. 2018 Water is pumped from tanks and carried in buckets across dusty gravel to filthy, overcrowded tents. — Sophia Jones, Marie Claire, "The Truth About The Wives of ISIS," 4 Oct. 2018 Yamaha was smart enough to stage this road test for us in the Austrian Alps, where the roads suit it: sweeping turns, crazy-tight hairpins, gravel, wet corners, and discarded roadside schnitzel. — David Curcurito, Popular Mechanics, "Don't Call It a Trike: Why We Love Yamaha’s Double-Front-Wheel Motorcycle," 27 Sep. 2018 The same goes for open-toes, which can catch gravel, wood chips or other natural elements. — Stephanie Cain, The Seattle Times, "Let’s get married! And go camping!," 13 Sep. 2018 Buried under as much of 40 feet of mud, rock and gravel, the old roadway in some cases had been pushed all the way to the ocean hundreds of feet below. — Jim Carlton, WSJ, "As Big Sur Roadway Reopens, Businesses Eagerly Await Surge in Visitors," 18 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Reaching the stadium from the baseball offices is a circuitous route that takes you in one door and then out of another in State’s indoor football facility, down a steep, unleveled sidewalk and through a dusty, graveled-covered work site. — Ross Dellenger, SI.com, "How Mississippi State Baseball Turned a Season That Began in Humiliation Into a Trip to Omaha," 15 June 2018 This practice begs the question: would gravel make sense in some of the areas off the path of the driveway? — Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, "Here’s what to do with all that sand and gravel left behind now that the snow has melted," 3 May 2018 For developers, Davis says, the upfront cost of the seeds and planting is offset in the long term by lower maintenance costs—no turf to mow or gravel erosion to manage. — National Geographic, "Beekeepers Sweeten Solar Sites With the 'Tesla of Honey'," 24 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gravel.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.