comminute
UK/ˈkɒ.mɪ.njuːt//ˈkɑ.mɪ.njuːt/
comminute verb: to break into smaller portions.
Verb
comminute (third-person singular simple present comminutes, present participle comminuting, simple past and past participle comminuted)
- To break into smaller portions.
- Near-synonym: macerate
- Synonyms:
- macerate
- To pulverize; to smash.
- High temperatures required for reaction between components can result in loss of volatile oxides, while milling may not comminute powders sufficiently for complete reaction to occur on calcination.1991, David Segal, Chemical Synthesis of Advanced Ceramic Materials, page 20
- Collagen may cause shrinkage of comminuted meat products, especially when cooked to high temperatures, or interfere in binding between meat pieces in formed products.2000, Denise M. Smith, “Chapter Eleven: Functional properties of muscle proteins in processed poultry products”, in Alan R. Sams, editor, Poultry Meat Processing, 2nd edition, page 186
- To cause fragmentation (of bone).
- For example, comminuting fractures on ribs 4–8 along the rib angle most likely are associated to shots through the scapula, whereas injuries through or near to the costochondral articulation of the first rib could also be associated to wounds of the sternum or clavicle.2008, Erin H. Kimmerle, Jose Pablo Baraybar, Skeletal Trauma: Identification of Injuries Resulting from Human Rights Abuse and Armed Conflict, page 410
- In the past, there have been controversies over the use of bone graft in comminuted fractures of the forearm.2011, S. John Ham, Matthijs R. Krijnen, Rudolf W. Poolman, “48: Forearm Fractures, Including Galeazzi Fractures”, in Mohit Bhandari, editor, Evidence-based Orthopedics, page 419
Noun
comminute (countable and uncountable, plural comminutes)
- Pulverized material.
- The drink contains lemon comminute.
- A method of making a restructured meat product in the form of small pieces from a comminute of raw meat, comprising:[…].1975, Hallie B. North, Commercial Food Patents, U.S. 1975, page 166
Examples of comminute in a sentence
- High pressure directly ahead of and beside the projectile nose comminute and fracture the sand media, forming a rigid, conical false nose on the front of the projectile.2011, William L. Cooper, “Communication of Stresses by Chains of Grains in High-Speed Particulate Media Impacts”, in Tom Proulx, editor...
- The typical concentrated juices and comminutes used by the industry for manufacturing dilutable drinks are shown in Table 6.3.2008, P. R. Ashurst, “6: Non-carbonated beverages”, in Philip R. Ashurst, editor, Chemistry and Technology of Soft Drinks and Fruit Juices...
Synonyms of comminute
Forms of comminute
| Verb | |
|---|---|
| third-person singular present | comminutes |
| present participle | comminuting |
| past participle | comminuted |
| past | comminuted |
| Noun | |
| plural | comminutes |
Origin of comminute
From Latin comminūtus (“crumbled, lessened”).
Words formed from comminute
Questions about comminute
- What does comminute mean?
- Comminute means to break into smaller portions.
- How do you use comminute in a sentence?
- High pressure directly ahead of and beside the projectile nose comminute and fracture the sand media, forming a rigid, conical false nose on the front of the projectile.
- What part of speech is comminute?
- Comminute can be a verb or a noun.
- How do you pronounce comminute?
- Comminute is pronounced /ˈkɒ.mɪ.njuːt/ (UK).
- What is the past tense of comminute?
- The past tense of comminute is comminuted.
Words near comminute in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: comminute (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-comminute.ogg.
Cite this entry: “comminute.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/comminute. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.