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The Collaborative International Dictionary
Comminute

Comminute \Com"mi*nute\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Comminuted; p. pr. & vb. n. Comminuting.] [L. comminutus, p. p. of comminuere to comminute; com- + minuere to lessen. See Minute.] To reduce to minute particles, or to a fine powder; to pulverize; to triturate; to grind; as, to comminute chalk or bones; to comminute food with the teeth.
--Pennant.

Comminuted fracture. See under Fracture.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
comminute

1620s, from Latin comminutus, past participle of comminuere "to lessen, break into smaller parts," from com- "together" (see com-) + minuere "to make smaller" (see minus). Related: Comminuted; comminuting.

Wiktionary
comminute

n. pulverized material. vb. 1 To pulverize; to smash. 2 (context medicine English) To cause fragmentation (of bone). 3 To break into smaller portions.

WordNet
comminute

v. reduce to small pieces or particles by pounding or abrading; "grind the spices in a mortar"; "mash the garlic" [syn: grind, mash, crunch, bray]

Wikipedia

Usage examples of "comminute".

After his removal it was found that his left humerus was fractured at its lower third, and apparently comminuted.

I told her what you told me to tell her: that you were now but an incoherent series of compound fractures extending from your scalp-lock to your heels, and that the comminuted projections caused you to look like a hat-rack.

With an occasional lounge on the soft sand, when the body became clad in a costume of mica spangles and finely comminuted shell grit, the bathe continued for two hours, with an after effect of sleek and silky content.

Granted that no one can draw a clear line and define the limits within which a miracle is healthy working and beyond which it is unwholesome, any more than he can prescribe the exact degree of fineness to which we must comminute our food.