Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
MARBLE
I. noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French marbre, from Latin marmor, from Greek marmaros
Date: 12th century
1. limestone that is more or less crystallized by metamorphism, that ranges from granular to compact in texture, that is capable of taking a high polish, and that is used especially in architecture and sculpture, something (as a piece of sculpture) composed of or made from marble, something suggesting marble (as in hardness, coldness, or smoothness) ,
2. a little ball made of a hard substance (as glass) and used in various games, any of several games played with these little balls, the rewards to be won in competition especially for a championship, marbling , elements of common sense, marble adjective
II. transitive verb (marbled; marbling)
Date: 1675
to give a veined or mottled appearance to