Definition of shingle

i. Coarse, loose, well-rounded waterworn detritus or alluvial material of various sizes; esp. beach gravel, composed of smooth and spheroidal or flattened pebbles, cobbles, and sometimes small boulders, generally measuring 20 to 200 mm in diameter; it occurs typically on the higher parts of a beach. The term is more widely used in Great Britain than in the United States.

See Also: chingle

ii. A place strewn with shingle; e.g., a shingle beach. Etymol: probably Scandinavian, akin to singel, coarse gravel that sings or crunches when walked on.

Ref: AGI