This term denotes small stones or pebbles, appearing in one literal and one debated metaphorical context. In 2 Samuel it describes dragging a city's stones into a valley, while Amos uses it in contested agricultural imagery about God winnowing Israel—either a grain kernel retained in a sieve or a pebble that doesn't fall through. The semantic range spans literal small rocks to possible metaphorical use for small valuable items preserved from loss. Commentators divide on whether Amos intends agricultural or lithic imagery.