Pulverize
/ˈpʌl.və.raɪz/noun
To reduce something to fine powder or tiny fragments.
Did you know?Pulverize comes from Latin *pulverizare*, built from *pulvis* meaning “dust,” a root that also gave English the poetic word *poultice* through a different historical path.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*pel-
“to beat, strike, or crush”
Latin
Latin
pulvis
“dust, fine powder”
Late Latin
Latin
pulverizare
“to reduce to dust; to powder”
Middle French
Old French
pulvériser
“to pulverize, reduce to powder”
16th Century
English
pulverize
“to reduce to powder or fine particles”
Modern English
English
pulverize
“to reduce something to fine powder or tiny fragments”