Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
GRAVEL
I. noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French gravele, diminutive of grave, greve river bank, stony ground
Date: 13th century
sand ,
2. loose rounded fragments of rock, a stratum or deposit of gravel, small calculi in the kidneys and urinary bladder,
II. transitive verb (-eled or -elled; -eling or gravelling)
Date: 1543
to cover or spread with gravel,
2. perplex , confound , irritate , nettle ,
III. adjective
Date: 1939
gravelly 2