- the act or process of chewing: Limited ability to open the mouth may make proper mastication of food more difficult.
- the act or process of grinding, shredding, crushing, or kneading to a pulp: In the office he could hear the soft chatter of people on their phones, the steely mastication of a paper shredder, the thwack of a coffee mug being set down.A machine with two horizontal rolls revolving in opposite directions is used for the mastication of rubber.
- the act or process of grinding up small trees and brush in a forest in order to thin it out or reduce the fuel available to forest fires: The remains of mastication and chipping are left on the forest floor, forming a mulch to protect the soil from compaction and erosion.
