MAC'ERATE, verb transitive [Latin macero, from macer, thin, lean; maceo, to be thin or lean; Eng. meager, meek.] 1. To make lean; to wear away. 2. To mortify; to harass with corporeal hardships; to cause to pine or waste away. Out of excessive zeal they macerate their bodies and impair their health. 3. To steep almost to solution; to soften and separate the parts of a substance by steeping it in a fluid, or by the digestive process. So we say, food is macerated in the stomach.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI