What does "gravelly" mean?
Full of, covered with, or similar to gravel or pebbles.
Gravelly
/ˈɡɹævəli/ adj
adj ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Full of, covered with, or similar to gravel or pebbles.
- Grammar: gravelly is listed as adj.
- Nearest alternatives: grating, pebbly, raspy, arenaceous.
- Useful contrasts: clear, melodious, polished.
- Usage evidence: Billie Holiday had an earthy, gravelly voice.
How to use "gravelly"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "gravelly" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "gravelly" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "gravelly" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "gravelly" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "gravelly" is acting as adj in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "grating" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "gravelly", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Adjective
- 1 Full of, covered with, or similar to gravel or pebbles.
"The dung which men make […] is greatly miſlyked, for that by nature it is hoter and burneth the ſeedes ſowne in that earth: ſo that this is not to bee uſed, unleſſe the ground be a barren, grauelly or verie louſe ſand, lacking ſtrength in it, which being on ſuche wiſe, requyreth the more helpe of nouriſhment and fatning, through this kinde of dung: […]"
- 2 Of a voice: unpleasantly harsh or rasping.
"[…] currently incarcerated Stinc Team members Ketchy the Great, SaySoTheMac, and Bambino; the devilish and gravelly Almighty Suspect; red-clad Inglewooder and headband connoisseur FreeAckrite; baby-faced Martin Luther King Park loiterer Johnny Rose; […]"
- 3 Caused by or involving gravel (“kidney stones”).
- 4 Full of or covered with sand; sandy. obsolete
"As the goeing vp a grauelie way in the feete of the aged, ſo a woman ful of tongue to a quiet man."
Adjective
- 1 unpleasantly harsh or grating in sound wordnet
- 2 abounding in small stones wordnet
Example
"Billie Holiday had an earthy, gravelly voice."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "gravelly"?
Common synonyms include: grating, pebbly, raspy, arenaceous, arenarious, breccial.
How do you use "gravelly" in a sentence?
Billie Holiday had an earthy, gravelly voice.
How do you pronounce "gravelly"?
Pronounced /ˈɡɹævəli/.
Etymology
From Middle English gravelli (“covered with gravel or sand; (pathology) containing sand-like matter”), from gravel (“sand; grain of stand; gravel, pebbles; (pathology) sand-like matter in the urine, calculus”) + -lī (suffix forming adjectives). Gravel is derived from Old French gravel, gravele, gravelle (“gravel; (pathology) calculus”) (modern French gravelle (“(pathology) calculus”)), from grave (“coarse sand, gravel; seashore”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʰreh₁w- (“to grind”); modern French grève (“riverbank; shore, strand”)) + -ele (diminutive suffix). The English word is analysable as gravel + -y (suffix forming adjectives meaning ‘having the quality of’).