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mine2

Pronunciation: /mʌɪn/
Translate mine | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of mine

noun

  • 1an excavation in the earth for extracting coal or other minerals:a copper mine
  • [in singular] an abundant source of something, especially information:the text is a mine of information for biographers and historians
  • 2a type of bomb placed on or just below the surface of the ground or in the water, which detonates on contact with a person, vehicle, or ship: his jeep ran over a mine and he was killed
  • historical a subterranean passage under the wall of a besieged fortress, especially one in which explosives were placed to blow up fortifications.

verb

[with object]
  • 1obtain (coal or other minerals) from a mine: the company came to the area to mine phosphate (as adjective mined)35 million tonnes of mined coal
  • dig in (the earth) for coal or other minerals:the hills were mined for copper oxide [no object]:many financiers obtained concessions to mine for silver
  • dig or burrow in (the earth): the earth beneath had been tortuously mined by pestilential rabbits
  • exploit (a source of information or skill):how do they manage to mine such a rich vein of talent?
  • analyse (a database) to generate new information.
  • 2lay explosive mines on or just below the surface of (the ground or water):the area was heavily mined
  • destroy by means of an explosive mine: HMS Ocean was mined in the Dardanelles in 1915

Derivatives

mineable

(also minable) adjective

Origin:

late Middle English: from Old French mine (noun), miner (verb), perhaps of Celtic origin; compare with Welsh mwyn 'ore', earlier 'mine'

mine in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of mine in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

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