Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To cut or chop into very small pieces.
- intransitive verb To subdivide (land, for example) into minute parts.
- intransitive verb To pronounce in an affected way, as with studied elegance and refinement.
- intransitive verb To moderate, restrain, or euphemize (words) for the sake of politeness and decorum.
- intransitive verb To walk with very short steps or with exaggerated primness.
- intransitive verb To speak in an affected way.
- noun Finely chopped food, especially mincemeat.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To make less; make small; specifically, to cut or chop into very small pieces: as, to
mince meat. - To lessen; diminish; especially, to diminish in speaking; speak of lightly or slightingly; minimize.
- To utter primly: bring or show forth sparingly or in a half-spoken way; hence, to display with affected delicacy; use affectation in regard to: as, to
mince one's words or a narrative; to mince the lapses of one's neighbors; a minced oath. - To effect mincingly.
- To walk with short steps or with affected nicety; affect delicacy in manner.
- To speak with affected elegance.
- noun Same as
mince-meat .
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb To walk with short steps; to walk in a prim, affected manner.
- intransitive verb To act or talk with affected nicety; to affect delicacy in manner.
- transitive verb To cut into very small pieces; to chop fine; to hash.
- transitive verb To suppress or weaken the force of; to extenuate; to palliate; to tell by degrees, instead of directly and frankly; to clip, as words or expressions; to utter half and keep back half of.
- transitive verb rare To affect; to make a parade of.
- noun A short, precise step; an affected manner.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun uncountable Finely chopped meat.
- noun uncountable Finely chopped mixed fruit used in Christmas pies;
mincemeat . - noun countable An affected (often dainty or short and precise) gait.
- noun countable An affected manner, especially of speaking; an affectation.
- verb transitive To make less; make small.
- verb transitive To
lessen ;diminish ; to diminish in speaking; speak of lightly or slightingly;minimise . - verb transitive, rare To effect mincingly.
- verb transitive, cooking To cut into very small pieces; to chop fine.
- verb transitive To suppress or weaken the force of; to extenuate; to palliate; to tell by degrees, instead of directly and frankly; to clip, as words or expressions; to utter half and keep back half of.
- verb transitive To affect; to pronounce affectedly or with an accent.
- verb intransitive To walk with short steps; to walk in a prim, affected manner.
- verb intransitive To act or talk with affected nicety; to affect delicacy in manner.
- verb archaic To diminish the force of.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun food chopped into small bits
- verb make less severe or harsh
- verb walk daintily
- verb cut into small pieces
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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World War II, they mince, is the reason we got out of the Great Depression.
Aemilia Scott: Your Conservative Friend Is Actually a Big Pinko. Or: How We Got Out of the Great Depression. Aemilia Scott 2010
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World War II, they mince, is the reason we got out of the Great Depression.
Aemilia Scott: Your Conservative Friend Is Actually a Big Pinko. Or: How We Got Out of the Great Depression. Aemilia Scott 2010
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World War II, they mince, is the reason we got out of the Great Depression.
Aemilia Scott: Your Conservative Friend Is Actually a Big Pinko. Or: How We Got Out of the Great Depression. Aemilia Scott 2010
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World War II, they mince, is the reason we got out of the Great Depression.
Aemilia Scott: Your Conservative Friend Is Actually a Big Pinko. Or: How We Got Out of the Great Depression. Aemilia Scott 2010
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So the mince is now turned into bolognaise (very healthy version too - no excess fat whatsoever and none of that ready made bolognaise sauce rubbish) and is happily simmering.
The One With The Achievements kisobel 2007
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Cromwell's Head Tavern, a building which is still standing on the north side of School Street, upon the site of No. 13, where Mrs. Harrington now deals out coffee and "mince" - pie to her customers, Beacon Hill was a collection of pastures, owned by thirteen proprietors, in lots containing from a half to twenty acres each.
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When the game ended, with him invariably the winner, players and spectators alike repaired to a tent to gorge ourselves on barbe - cue, a delicious concoction of roasted pork and peppery sauce, assisted by melons and fruits, all washed down with glasses of toddy, punch and porter, followed by a rich dessert called mince pie.
Legacy Michener, James 1987
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- highlight of the mince was an attempted Sfx, namely “boing”, with the appropriate italian soccer referee gestures and carryings on, perhaps in sympathy with rolph harris (two little boys had two little toys).salute. v.
Cheeseburger Gothic » Here’s what I did at six o’clock this morning. 2009
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He does kind of mince like a sad cat when confronted with icky wet grass or mud.
but not a real pandemic, that's cruel. stillsostrange 2009
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Larry Downing/Reuters Alex Wells, 13, of San Diego, spelled "mince" correctly in round two on Wednesday, left, and made it to round five Thursday before misspelling "dansant."
Spelled Out 2009
yarb commented on the word mince
...her small stiff steps ... minced down the hall and died out in the distance.
- Edith Wharton, The Reef
June 28, 2008
she commented on the word mince
(..) Her father, faithful keeper, fed me well,
but she came daily with my special bowl
barefoot into my cage (..)
Until today: an icy spectre, sheathed
in silk, minced to my side on pointed feet.
I ripped the scented veil from its unreal
head (..) A ghost has bones, and meat!
Come soon, my love, my bride, and share this meal.
- Gwen Harwood, The Lion's Bride
August 31, 2008
Jubjub commented on the word mince
I'm trying to understand the connection between the definition of mince in phrases like minced oath and mince your words and its etymology "minūtiāre"-- to make smaller. Because every time I hear "I'm not one to mince my words", the first thing I picture is someone with a bunch of words on a chopping board and a cleaver.
Is the idea that a minced oath, in general, was not only euphemized, but also contracted, i.e. made smaller?
June 11, 2010
Jubjub commented on the word mince
In Japanese culture, the mincing gait seems to describe the behavior and effects associated with foot binding.
June 12, 2010
100000232338334 commented on the word mince
If felt strange to be going about the opening routine, just as if Lafayette were going to mince in any minute with a story about some party he'd been to, the way he had a few days before. -Charlaine Harris, Living Dead in Dallas
December 11, 2010