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macerate

[mas-uh-reyt]
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verb (used with object), mac·er·at·ed, mac·er·at·ing.
  1. to soften or separate into parts by steeping in a liquid.
  2. to soften or decompose (food) by the action of a solvent.
  3. to cause to grow thin.
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verb (used without object), mac·er·at·ed, mac·er·at·ing.
  1. to undergo maceration.
  2. to become thin or emaciated; waste away.
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Origin of macerate

1540–50; < Latin mācerātus (past participle of mācerāre to make soft, weaken, steep); see -ate1
Related formsmac·er·at·er, mac·er·a·tor, nounmac·er·a·tive, adjectiveun·mac·er·at·ed, adjective

Synonyms

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5. shrink, shrivel, fade, wither.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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Historical Examples

British Dictionary definitions for macerate

macerate

verb
  1. to soften or separate or be softened or separated as a result of soaking
  2. to break up or cause to break up by soakingmacerated peaches
  3. to become or cause to become thin
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Derived Formsmacerater or macerator, nounmacerative, adjectivemaceration, noun

Word Origin

C16: from Latin mācerāre to soften
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for macerate

v.

late 15c., a back-formation from maceration or else from Latin maceratus, past participle of macerare "soften, make soft, soak, steep," related to maceria "garden wall," originally "of kneaded clay," from PIE *mak-ero-, suffixed form of root *mag- "to knead" (cf. Greek magis "kneaded mass, cake," mageus "one who kneads, baker;" Old Church Slavonic mazo "to anoint, smear;" Breton meza "to knead;" Middle Irish maistir "to churn"), also "to fashion, fit" (cf. make (v.)). Related: Macerated; macerating.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
macerate in Medicine

macerate

(măs′ə-rāt′)
v.
  1. To make soft by soaking or steeping in a liquid.
  2. To separate into constituents by soaking.
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n.
  1. A substance prepared or produced by macerating.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.