marl

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a loose earthy deposit made chiefly of clay and calcium carbonate, often containing shell fragments

   The fossil layer lay between bands of chalk and pale marl.

2. 2
   verb

   to spread marl on soil as a fertilizer or conditioner

   Farmers once marled the acidic fields to improve their fertility.

From Middle English marle and Anglo-French marle, from Medieval Latin margila, a diminutive related to Latin marga, 'marl,' probably borrowed from a Gaulish word. The agricultural verb arose from using the calcareous earth to improve soil.

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