mindful
Americanadjective
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attentive, aware, or careful (usually followed byof ).
mindful of one's responsibilities.
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noting or relating to the psychological technique of mindfulness.
mindful observation of one's experiences.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of mindful
First recorded in 1375–1425, mindful is from the late Middle English word mindeful. See mind, -ful
Explanation
Being mindful means paying close attention to or being especially conscious of something. If you are aware of the fact that your friend is upset, you're mindful of her feelings. Sometimes mindful has the sense of "careful," as when a farmer is mindful of the amount of water she uses during a drought, or when you're mindful of the fact that your little sister easily gets her feelings hurt. In Old English, myndful meant "of good memory," or "having a good mind," while the related word myndig had a meaning similar to today's mindful.
Vocabulary lists containing mindful
Vocabulary from Readings 1, Unit 1
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Careful
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Vocabulary from Readings, Unit 3
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Mindful of what we experienced in June and September 2025, we are unconvinced that the U.S. shares that mindset.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 20, 2026
Mindful of her Playhouse predecessors, Stone said she wants to continue to build on their legacy.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 18, 2025
Mindful of spoilers, Barnes only teases that the second half of the series involves Riri having to face some of the consequences of choices she made in earlier episodes.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 26, 2025
But a few farms, including Mindful Meat in Marin County, Calif., and Butter Meat Company in Pavilion, N.Y., just west of the Finger Lakes, have been selling meat from culled dairy cows and convincing skeptics.
From New York Times • Apr. 24, 2024
Mindful of ice holes, they prodded the snow in front of them with arrows, which slowed them down even more.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
