marble

Pronunciation

• IPA: UK /ˈmɑː.bəl/, US /ˈmɑːr.bəl/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Old French marbre (later marble),^[2][3][4] from Latin marmor,^[2][3] from Greek μάρμαρος (mármaros, “shining stone, block of rock”).^[2][4][5] The Greek word was associated with marmaírein, to sparkle, shine,^[4][5][6] though Barnhart and Merriam-Webster suggest it first meant breakable stone, related to words for crushing.^[2][7] The l of marble arose by dissimilation of the second r in marbre.^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Crystalline limestone used for building and sculpture: before 1200 as marbra,^[2] the mid-12th century in Etymonline;^[3] the compound marbelston is 12th century.^[4]

Semantic evolution

Old English had borrowed the Latin word directly as marma.^[3] A piece of sculptured or inscribed marble, such as a tombstone, is from the early 14th century.^[3] The adjective, made of marble, is from about 1375, and mottled like marble from the mid-15th century.^[2][3] Marble as a type of hardness or coldness is from 1586.^[8] The little ball used in children's games is from the 1690s,^[3] the late 17th century in Word Origins.^[5] The verb, to stain with veins like marble, is from the 1590s.^[3]

Timeline

• before 1200 – marbra.^[2]
• early 14th century – a marble tomb.^[3]
• c. 1375 – marble (adjective).^[2]
• 1590s – to marble (verb).^[3]
• 1690s – a glass or stone ball.^[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A hard limestone rock, often veined, that takes a high polish and is used for building and sculpture.
2. A small glass ball used in children's games.
3. A sculpture or carving in marble.

Verb

1. To stain or streak with veins of colour like marble.

Adjective

1. Made of or like marble.

Word family

• marbly
• marbler
• emmarble
• enmarble
• marblewood
• marbling
• onyx marble
• Carrara marble

Related words

• marmoreal
• marbles

Usage notes

Word Origins notes that losing one's marbles, going mad, refers to the game of marbles.^[5]

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
8. ^ Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press