Masticability

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The property of a material that permits it to be readily chewed or crushed into smaller fragments
2. The quality of a substance that allows it to be broken down by chewing
3. The characteristic of something enabling it to be easily crushed or softened by the teeth

Etymology: "Masticability" is a straightforward formation: it combines "mastic", the verb meaning to chew or grind food, with the suffix "-ability", which turns an adjective-like quality into a noun for the capacity to be done. "Mastic" comes via Latin "masticare", "to chew", from Greek "mastikhan", "to gnash the teeth", and reached English through Middle English in the 1400s, so the word is a Greek root filtered through Latin and French rather than a native English term. "Masticable", the adjective from which the noun is built, is the older base, and the noun was formed on it in English, most likely in the 19th century, when scientists and food writers needed a precise term for the texture of foods. Its use is limited mainly to technical discussions of diet, dentistry and food science, where it names a measurable property rather than a casual impression.