pebble

pebble — noun

1. a small stone with a smooth, rounded shape, often shaped by water and seen on be

1.nounB2
Definition

a small stone with a smooth, rounded shape, often shaped by water and seen on beaches or in rivers.

Example

Emma filled her pocket with flat pebbles from the riverbank.

flat pebbles from a riverbank

Small pebbles crunched under our shoes as we walked down the beach.

pebbles on a beach

Common collocations
  • smooth pebble
  • flat pebble
  • white pebbles
  • beach pebbles
  • skip a pebble
Synonyms
  • stone

    the broad everyday word; it can be larger or less smooth than a pebble

  • rock

    usually larger, rougher, and less neatly rounded

  • gravel

    usually many small stones together as a surface or material, not one piece

Grammar Patterns

a smooth pebble

pebbles on the beach

Usage Note

Usually used for one small, rounded stone that you can pick up in your hand. Distinguish from 'gravel', which normally means many small stones used together as a surface, not one separate stone.

Common Mistakes

The child picked up a gravel from the beach.
The child picked up a pebble from the beach.
'gravel' usually means many small stones as a mass, not one single stone.
There were many pebble near the river.
There were many pebbles near the river.
use the plural 'pebbles' for more than one stone.

pebble — verb

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

A 'pebble' is more specific than 'stone' or 'rock'. It usually means a small, smooth, rounded piece of stone, often shaped by water and easy to hold in one hand. 'Stone' is the broad everyday word and can refer to a small piece, a larger object, or building material. 'Rock' usually suggests something bigger, rougher, or more solid, such as a large piece on the ground or part of a cliff. 'Gravel' normally means many tiny stones used together on roads or paths, not one separate piece. So a child can skip a pebble across a lake, a wall can be made of stone, a hiker can sit on a rock, and a driveway can be covered with gravel.

pebble ↗stone ↗rock ↗gravel ↗