comminute

verb

com·​mi·​nute ˈkä-mə-ˌnüt 

-ˌnyüt

comminuted; comminuting

transitive verb

: to reduce to minute particles : pulverize

comminution

ˌkä-mə-ˈnü-shən 

-ˈnyü-

noun

Did you know?

What do comminute, pulverize, and triturate all have in common? All three words are derived from Latin and share the meaning "to reduce to small particles." Comminute can be traced back to the prefix com- and the verb minuere, meaning "to lessen." Pulverize descends from a combination of pulver-, meaning "dust" or "powder," with the suffix -izare, which—like the English -ize—can mean "to cause to be." Triturate is borrowed from the past participle of the Latin triturare, which means "to thresh." Triturate specifically refers to the use of rubbing or grinding to achieve pulverization, a process which could be said to resemble the use of rubbing to separate grains from harvested cereal plants.

Synonyms

• atomize
• beat
• bray
• crush
• disintegrate
• grind
• mill
• mull
• pound
• powder
• pulverize

Examples of comminute in a Sentence

eons of incessant pounding by the waves have comminuted the once-rocky shoreline into a bed of fine-grained sand

Recent Examples on the Web

The report of displacement (out of alignment) is not as worrisome as if the fracture was comminuted (pieces). —Profootballdoc, sandiegouniontribune.com, 5 Nov. 2017

Also, this prognosis is rooted in my hopefulness the fracture is not comminuted (in multiple pieces), as that might prolong the timeline by a couple of weeks. —Profootballdoc, sandiegouniontribune.com, 16 Oct. 2017

Word History

Etymology

Latin comminutus, past participle of comminuere, from com- + minuere to lessen — more at minor

First Known Use

1626, in the meaning defined above

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Medical Definition

comminute

transitive verb

com·​mi·​nute ˈkäm-ə-ˌn(y)üt 

comminuted; comminuting

: to reduce to minute particles

prolonged trituration to comminute a therapeutic agent

comminution

ˌkäm-ə-ˈn(y)ü-shən 

noun