granulate

American  

[gran-yuh-layt] / ˈgræn jəˌleɪt /

verb (used with object)

granulated, granulating

1. to form into granules or grains.

2. to raise in granules; make rough on the surface.

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verb (used without object)

granulated, granulating

1. to become granular or grainy.

2. Pathology. to form granulation tissue.

granulate British  

/ ˈɡrænjʊˌleɪt /

verb

1. (tr) to make into grains

2. to make or become roughened in surface texture

3. (intr) (of a wound, ulcer, etc) to form granulation tissue

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Other Word Forms

• granulater
  noun
• granulator
  noun
• granulative
  adjective
• multigranulated
  adjective
• nongranulated
  adjective
• ungranulated
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of granulate

First recorded in 1660–70; granule + -ate ¹

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Explanation

Granulate means to form or reduce into grains. You've probably seen the word on a box of granulated sugar and not thought twice about the fact that, besides its granular form, sugar exists as a liquid and also inside sugar cane. Sugar, of course, is not a grain. A grain is rice, wheat, quinoa, corn––seeds that form the basis of most people's diets. Sugar forms grains when it's refined, appearing in its crystallized form to have a grain-like, or granulated, appearance.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

granulate granulated granulating

Meanwhile, Enviroo recently secured £58m to build a new recycling facility in the north-west of England, specialising in converting PET drink bottles into a recycled granulate that can be used in food packaging.

From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2025

And if honey does granulate it is still perfectly fine to eat.

From Salon ● Jun. 3, 2023

For well owners receiving Army assistance, the long-term plans for the taxpayer-financed cleanup range from installing granulate activated filtration systems to drilling deeper wells that could tap into PFAS-free water.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 23, 2022

For the A3, 45 bottles are used, ground up to create a granulate that is turned into a polyester yarn, accounting for 89 percent of the seat material.

From New York Times ● Sep. 9, 2021

Now it begins to granulate, swing it off.

From The Knickerbocker, or New-York Monthly Magazine, May 1844 Volume 23, Number 5 by Lewis Gaylord Clark

My House Spice, which I use on pretty much everything, is my mother’s recipe, a Creole and Cajun spice blend with salt, pepper, granulated onion and garlic, cayenne and paprika.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026

Add about 1/4 cup granulated sugar to a shallow bowl.

From Salon ● Dec. 13, 2025

I use a frother, and a little bit of granulated monk fruit sugar on top.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2025

"The pretence is that baled tyres are being sent to India and then shredded and granulated in a factory very similar to ours," explains Mr Mason.

From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2025

Vials are filled with ash from the Mount St. Helen’s eruption, and they look like granulated potions, dark glittering magic.

From "I Can Make This Promise" by Christine Day

Another preparation, called Graham grits, is prepared by granulating the outer layers of the kernel together with the germ of the wheat.

From Science in the Kitchen. by Mrs. E. E. Kellogg

The separate muscular layers were sharply defined in the lateral parts of the floor of the wound, and remained so for some time during the gradual contraction of the large granulating surface produced.

From Surgical Experiences in South Africa, 1899-1900 Being Mainly a Clinical Study of the Nature and Effects of Injuries Produced by Bullets of Small Calibre by George Henry Makins

In the manufacture of smokeless powders from nitro-cellulose, nitro-lignine, &c., the various substances are mixed with the gun-cotton or collodion-cotton before granulating.

From Nitro-Explosives: A Practical Treatise by P. Gerald (Percy Gerald) Sanford

It is made by granulating blast furnace slag of suitable composition and finely grinding the product, either alone or with an admixture of about 10% of Portland cement clinker.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 6 "Celtes, Konrad" to "Ceramics" by Various

At the same time it must be remembered that the granulating process of repair is always more rapid upon the plantar cushion and fleshy sole than upon the bone, or upon tendinous or cartilaginous structures.

From Diseases of the Horse's Foot by Harry Caulton Reeks

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