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particulate.

Composed of separate particles.

11 characters4 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/pɑːˈtɪk.jʊ.lɪt/UK/pɑːˈtɪk.jʊˌleɪt/UK/pəˈtɪk.jʊ.lɪt/UK/pəˈtɪk.jʊˌleɪt/UK
  1. Composed of separate particles.

    particulate air pollution
    particulate matter
  2. Pertaining to heritable characteristics which are attributable discretely to either one or another of an offspring's parents, rather than a blend of the two.

Where this word comes from

From New Latin particulātus (“divided into small parts”) (also particulāta (“small parts”), from its neuter plural), from Classical Latin particula (“particle”), from pars (“part, piece”) + -cula (diminutive suffix), + -ātus (-ate). The verb is probably independently from the adjective rather than from Etymology 2.

noun/pɑːˈtɪk.jʊ.lɪt/UK/pɑːˈtɪk.jʊˌleɪt/UK/pəˈtɪk.jʊ.lɪt/UK/pəˈtɪk.jʊˌleɪt/UK
  1. Any solid or liquid in a subdivided state, especially one that exhibits special characteristics which are negligible in the bulk material.

    in-plural
    Particulates in engine oil can abrade moving parts.
Where this word comes from

From New Latin particulātus (“divided into small parts”) (also particulāta (“small parts”), from its neuter plural), from Classical Latin particula (“particle”), from pars (“part, piece”) + -cula (diminutive suffix), + -ātus (-ate). The verb is probably independently from the adjective rather than from Etymology 2.

verb/pɑːˈtɪk.jʊ.lɪt/UK/pɑːˈtɪk.jʊˌleɪt/UK/pəˈtɪk.jʊ.lɪt/UK/pəˈtɪk.jʊˌleɪt/UK
  1. To reduce to particles, make particulate.

    transitive
Where this word comes from

From New Latin particulātus (“divided into small parts”) (also particulāta (“small parts”), from its neuter plural), from Classical Latin particula (“particle”), from pars (“part, piece”) + -cula (diminutive suffix), + -ātus (-ate). The verb is probably independently from the adjective rather than from Etymology 2.

verb
  1. Synonym of particularize.

    ambitransitive · obsolete
Where this word comes from

From Latin particulāt-, past participial stem (compare the verbal suffix -ate) of particulō (“to particularize”), from particula (“particle”) + -ō (verbal suffix).

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.