Art & MusicGreek → English
Marble
/ˈmɑːrbəl/noun
A hard crystalline limestone that takes a polish, used for building and sculpture.
The Greek roots
μάρμαρος
mármaros
crystalline shining stone
Literally: “the gleaming stone”
Follow a root:μάρμαρος1 word
The story of the word
Greek linked μάρμαρος with μαρμαίρω, to sparkle, although the verb may have been attached afterwards to explain a word already there. Latin marmor kept the sense; Old French marbre added the l, most likely to break up two r sounds in one short word. The Pentelic quarries above Athens supplied the Parthenon and are still being cut today.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → Old French → English
- First recorded
- 12th century
The same roots elsewhere
Other languages reached for exactly the same Greek pieces.
In a sentence
The marble on the stairs is worn into a dip at every tread.