marble

mouthful of marbles

A phrase used to describe the speech of someone who mumbles when talking. I have such a hard time understanding him—he always sounds like he has a mouthful of marbles.See also: marble, mouthful, of

all the marbles

All possible prizes or rewards. Typically used in the phrase "for all the marbles," which is said when one is on the verge of victory. He is currently in first place, so his final putt is for all the marbles!See also: all, marble

lose (one's) marbles

To be or become mentally deficient, incompetent, or deranged; to become of unsound mind. My poor grandmother started losing her marbles after she had a stroke. I've been so sleep deprived lately that it feels like I've lost my marbles!See also: lose, marble

pick up (one's) marbles and go home

To abandon or withdraw from a project, situation, or activity in a petulant manner because one does not like way in which it is progressing. It seems that the governor is ready to pick up his marbles and go home if the state senate isn't willing to increase the funds for the redevelopment scheme. The danger of relying on a private organization to fund a political campaign is that they may pick up their marbles and go home if the candidate doesn't do everything that's in the company's interest.See also: and, go, home, marble, pick, up

pick up (one's) marbles and leave

To abandon or withdraw from a project, situation, or activity in a petulant manner because one does not like way in which it is progressing. It seems that the governor is ready to pick up his marbles and leave if the state senate isn't willing to increase the funds for the redevelopment scheme. The danger of relying on a private organization to fund a political campaign is that they may pick up their marbles and leave if the candidate doesn't do everything that's in the company's interest.See also: and, leave, marble, pick, up

have all (one's) marbles

To be mentally sound or stable. Now that I've gotten a good night's sleep, I'm starting to feel like I have all my marbles again. Grandma still has all her marbles, in spite of her other health problems.See also: all, have, marble

be missing some of (one's) marbles

To be mentally deficient, incompetent, or deranged; to be of unsound mind. My poor grandmother is missing some of her marbles after her stroke. I've been so sleep deprived lately that it feels like I'm missing some of my marbles!See also: marble, missing, of

marble city

1. A cemetery. (A reference to headstones and monuments.) My wife and I went to book a plot of land in the marble city for when the time comes.2. A yard or other area featuring many statues. The bizarre site is a marble city where the many statued visages and iconography of the former regime have been preserved.See also: city, marble

marble orchard

1. A cemetery. (A reference to headstones and monuments.) My wife and I went to book a plot of land in the marble orchard for when the time comes.2. A yard or other area featuring many statues. The bizarre site is a marble orchard where the many statued visages and iconography of the former regime have been preserved.See also: marble, orchard

marble dome

A thoroughly stupid person; someone with no sense or intelligence. Don't listen to any advice that marble dome gives you—he's only got a job here because of who his daddy is. There's no way I'll lose to a marble dome like you.See also: dome, marble

not have all (one's) marbles

To not be completely mentally sound or stable. After he started bringing conspiracy theories into the conversation, I started wondering if maybe he didn't have all his marbles. It's easy to feel like you don't have all your marbles when you're that sleep deprived.See also: all, have, marble, not

have got all (one's) marbles

To be mentally sound or stable. Now that I've gotten a good night's sleep, I'm starting to feel like I've got all my marbles again. Grandma still has got all her marbles, in spite of her other health problems.See also: all, have, marble

*all the marbles

Fig. all the winnings, spoils, or rewards. (*Typically: end up with ~; get ~; win ~; give someone ~.) Somehow Fred always seems to end up with all the marbles. I don't think he plays fair.See also: all, marble

*cold as a welldigger's ass (in January)

and *cold as a welldigger's feet (in January); *cold as a witch's caress; *cold as marble; *cold as a witch's tit; *cold as a welldigger's ears (in January)very, very cold; chilling. (Use caution with ass. *Also: as ~.) Bill: How's the weather where you are? Tom: Cold as a welldigger's ass in January. By the time I got in from the storm, I was as cold as a welldigger's feet. The car's heater broke, so it's as cold as a welldigger's ears to ride around in it. She gave me a look as cold as a witch's caress.See also: ass, cold

have all one's marbles

Fig. to have all one's mental faculties; to be mentally sound. (Very often with a negative or said to convey doubt.) I don't think he has all his marbles. Do you think Bob has all his marbles?See also: all, have, marble

lose (all) one's marbles

and lose one's mindFig. to go crazy; to go out of one's mind. What a silly thing to say! Have you lost your marbles? Look at Sally jumping up and down and screaming. Is she losing all her marbles? I can't seem to remember anything. I think I'm losing my mind.See also: lose, marble

not have all one's marbles

Fig. not to have all one's mental capacities. John acts as if he doesn't have all his marbles. I'm afraid that I don't have all my marbles all the time.See also: all, have, marble, not

have all one's buttons

Also, have all one's marbles. Be completely sane and rational. For example, Grandma may be in a wheelchair, but she still has all her buttons, or I'm not sure he has all his marbles. These slangy expressions date from the mid-1800s, as do the antonyms lose or be missing some of one's buttons or marbles , meaning "become (or be) mentally deficient." See also: all, button, have

lose one's marbles

see under have all one's buttons. See also: lose, marble

lose your marbles

INFORMALIf you lose your marbles, you become crazy. At 83 I haven't lost my marbles and my memory is, thank God, as clear as it ever was. People are talking about him as if he's lost his marbles. Note: You can also say that someone has all their marbles, meaning that they are not crazy. He's in his eighties but he clearly still has all his marbles.See also: lose, marble

pick up your marbles and go home

AMERICANIf you pick up your marbles and go home, you leave a situation or activity in which you are involved because you are angry about what is happening. They called it the dirtiest Olympics ever and briefly threatened to pick up their marbles and go home. Note: You usually use this expression to suggest that someone is wrong to do this. Note: The reference here is to a player in a game of marbles who is annoyed about losing and therefore stops playing and takes the marbles away so that nobody else can play either. See also: and, go, home, marble, pick, up

lose your marbles

go insane; become irrational or senile. informal Marbles as a term for ‘a person's mental faculties’ probably originated as early 20th-century American slang. The underlying reference is apparently to the children's game played with multicoloured glass balls. 1998 Spectator At least, that is how I recall the event, but I am losing my marbles. See also: lose, marble

marble orchard

a cemetery. informal humorousSee also: marble, orchard

pick up your marbles and go home

withdraw petulantly from an activity after having suffered a setback. informal, chiefly US The image here is of a child who refuses sulkily to continue playing the game of marbles.See also: and, go, home, marble, pick, up

lose your ˈmarbles

(informal) become crazy or mentally confused: They say the old man has lost his marbles because of the strange things he’s been saying, but I’m not so sure.See also: lose, marble

have all one’s marbles

tv. to have all one’s mental faculties; to be mentally sound. (see also lose (all) one’s marbles. Have got can replace have.) I don’t think he has all his marbles. See also: all, have, marble

lose (all) one’s marbles

tv. to become crazy. (see also have all one’s marbles.) Have you lost all your marbles? See also: all, lose, marble

lose one’s marbles

verbSee lose all one’s marblesSee also: lose, marble

marble dome

n. a stupid person. (Someone who has marble where brains should be.) The guy’s a marble dome. He has no knowledge of what’s going on around him. See also: dome, marble

marble orchard

and Marble City n. a cemetery. I already bought a little plot in a marble orchard. There is a huge Marble City south of town. See also: marble, orchard

Marble City

verbSee marble orchardSee also: city, marble

marble

marble,

metamorphic rockrock,
aggregation of solid matter composed of one or more of the minerals forming the earth's crust. The scientific study of rocks is called petrology. Rocks are commonly divided, according to their origin, into three major classes—igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic.
..... Click the link for more information. composed wholly or in large part of calcitecalcite
, very widely distributed mineral, commonly white or colorless, but appearing in a great variety of colors owing to impurities. Chemically it is calcium carbonate, CaCO₃, but it frequently contains manganese, iron, or magnesium in place of the calcium.
..... Click the link for more information. or dolomitedolomite
. 1 Mineral, calcium magnesium carbonate, CaMg (CO₃)₂. It is commonly crystalline and is white, gray, brown, or reddish in color with a vitreous to pearly luster. The magnesium is sometimes replaced in part by iron or manganese.
..... Click the link for more information. crystals, the crystalline texture being the result of metamorphismmetamorphism,
in geology, process of change in the structure, texture, or composition of rocks caused by agents of heat, deforming pressure, shearing stress, hot, chemically active fluids, or a combination of these, acting while the rock being changed remains essentially in the
..... Click the link for more information. of limestonelimestone,
sedimentary rock wholly or in large part composed of calcium carbonate. It is ordinarily white but may be colored by impurities, iron oxide making it brown, yellow, or red and carbon making it blue, black, or gray. The texture varies from coarse to fine.
..... Click the link for more information. by heat and pressure. The term marble is loosely applied to any limestone or dolomite that takes a good polish and is otherwise suitable as a building stone or ornamental stone. Marbles range in color from snow-white to gray and black, many varieties being some shade of red, yellow, pink, green, or buff; the colors, which are caused by the presence of impurities, are frequently arranged in bands or patches and add to the beauty of the stone when it is cut and polished. Marble is used as a material in statuary and monuments, as a facing stone in buildings and residences, and for pillars, colonnades, paneling, wainscoting, and floor tiles. Like all limestones, it is corroded by water and acid fumes and is thus ultimately an uneconomical material for use in exposed places and in large cities. The presence of certain impurities decreases its durability. Marble was extensively used by the ancient Greeks; the Parthenon and other famous buildings were constructed of white Pentelic marble from Mt. Pentelicus in Attica, and the finest statues, e.g., the Venus de' Medici, from the remarkably lustrous Parian marble from Paros in the Cyclades. These same quarries were later used by the Romans. Among the famous marbles of Italy are the Carrara and Siena marbles of Tuscany, which were used by the Romans and the Italian sculptors of the Renaissance. Marbles are quarried in all parts of the world. The finest marbles in the United States come from Vermont, which produces large quantities. Other states important as marble producers are Massachusetts, Maryland, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, California, Colorado, and Arizona. See alabasteralabaster,
fine-grained, massive, translucent variety of gypsum, a hydrous calcium sulfate. It is pure white or streaked with reddish brown. Alabaster, like all other forms of gypsum, forms by the evaporation of bedded deposits that are precipitated mainly from evaporating
..... Click the link for more information. .

marble

Metamorphic rock made up largely of calcite or dolomite; capable of taking a high polish, and used especially in architecture and sculpture; numerous minerals account for its distinctive appearance.

Marble

a crystalline rock formed as a result of the recrystallization of limestone or dolomite. The term “marble” is applied commercially to any metamorphic rock of medium hardness that can be polished; this category of rock includes marble, marmorized limestone, dense dolomite, ophicalcite, calcareous breccia, and calcareous conglomerates. Marble almost always contains impurities of other minerals (quartz, chalcedony, hematite, pyrite, limonite, chlorite), as well as organic compounds. The impurities have a varying effect on the quality of the marble, increasing or decreasing its decorativeness.

Marble has a specific gravity of 2.65–2.90 and a compressive strength ranging from 50 to 250 meganewtons per square meter (500–2, 500 kilograms-force per square meter). The abradability is from 0.40 to 3.20 g/cm², and the water absorption is from 0.15 to 0.50 percent. Finely crystalline marble with dentate bounding of the grains is the most durable and takes the best polish. Structurally uniform marbles are frost resistant.

The color of the marble depends on the impurities. The majority of colored marbles have mottled coloration; the pattern is determined not only by the structure of the marble but also by the direction along which the rock is cut. The color and pattern of the marble appear after polishing. To determine the industrial value of marble deposits, the proximity of transport facilities and the thickness of the overlying stratum of weathered marble (the maximum is usually 5–8 m) are taken into consideration.

Marble is quarried and, less frequently, mined. To obtain monolithic blocks, stonecutting machines and cable saws are used, as are wedges in bored holes and percussive cutters.

Marble has been used since antiquity in architecture as a structural element and as facing owing to its plastic and decorative properties (hardness, fine grain). Marble’s fine grain makes the rock easy to work with and capable of being polished. Polishing reveals the tonal richness of marble and the beauty of its uniform, patchy, or laminated structure. Marble has been used for making mosaics (the incrustation style and Florentine mosaics), reliefs, and freestanding sculptures (primarily carved from marble of a single color—usually white). The relative transparency of the rock results in the delicate play of light and shadow on the surface of marble scupltures.

In the USSR there are as many as 60 known deposits of marble and marmorized limestone (in Karelia, the Ukraine, the Urals, Transcaucasia, Middle Asia, Siberia, and the Far East). The marble reserves in the USSR are virtually inexhaustible. The best grades of white marble from Soviet deposits are used for sculpturing. Marble deposits in Italy include those in Carrara, which yield the finest marble for sculpturing; this marble is white, brilliant, and easy to polish. The Paros quarry in Greece yields the yellowish marble that was used by ancient Greek sculptors. Other countries with marble deposits include Cuba, France, Norway, and the United States.

REFERENCES

Metrofanov, G. K. , and I. A. Shpanov. Oblitsovochnye i podelochnye kamni SSSR. Moscow, 1970.
Herbeck, A. Der Marmor. Berlin, 1953.

M. A. LIPSON

marble

[′mär·bəl] (petrology) Metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized calcite or dolomite. Commercially, any limestone or dolomite taking polish.

marble

A metamorphic rock composed largely of calcite or dolomite; often highly polished to enhance its appearance; available in different colors that result from differences in mineral content.

marble

1. a. a hard crystalline metamorphic rock resulting from the recrystallization of a limestone: takes a high polish and is used for building and sculpture b. (as modifier): a marble bust 2. a block or work of art of marble 3. a small round glass or stone ball used in playing marbles 4. white like some kinds of marble

marble

mar·ble

marble

mar•ble

mar·ble

marble

marble

marble

marble

marble

marble

marble

mouthful of marbles

all the marbles

lose (one's) marbles

pick up (one's) marbles and go home

pick up (one's) marbles and leave

have all (one's) marbles

be missing some of (one's) marbles

marble city

marble orchard

marble dome

not have all (one's) marbles

have got all (one's) marbles

*all the marbles

*cold as a welldigger's ass (in January)

have all one's marbles

lose (all) one's marbles

not have all one's marbles

have all one's buttons

lose one's marbles

lose your marbles

pick up your marbles and go home

lose your marbles

marble orchard

pick up your marbles and go home

lose your ˈmarbles

have all one’s marbles

lose (all) one’s marbles

lose one’s marbles

marble dome

marble orchard

Marble City

marble

marble,

marble

Marble

REFERENCES

marble

marble

marble

marble

Synonyms for marble

phrase lose your marbles

Synonyms

Synonyms for marble

noun a healthy mental state

Synonyms

Words related to marble

noun a hard crystalline metamorphic rock that takes a high polish

Related Words

noun a small ball of glass that is used in various games

Related Words

noun a sculpture carved from marble

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verb paint or stain like marble

Related Words