The most basic name for this marking tool is grease pencil. It looks like a pencil, you draw or write with it like a pencil, but its core is made of a soft, greasy wax, commonly wrapped in paper rather than encased in wood.

Grease pencils are most often used for marking a variety of surfaces in commercial and industrial applications. They work best on smooth or polished surfaces – everything from glass to PET (blow molded) bottles to polished stone, ceramics and metals like brass or stainless steel.