miner

American  

[mahy-ner] / ˈmaɪ nər /

noun

• miners
  plural

1. Also called mineworker. a person who works in a mine, especially a commercial mine producing coal or metallic ores.

   His ancestors were slate miners in Wales who emigrated to the United States.

2. a mechanical device used in mining.

   She made her money by developing a miner for extracting ores from the ocean floor.

3. any of several Australian birds of the genus Manorina, feeding on honey and typically having a loud call.

4. Entomology. any of various insect larvae that create tunnels in the parenchyma of leaves.

5. Digital Technology.

   1. a computer or network of computers engaged in solving sets of mathematical problems that are used to verify cryptocurrency transactions and that, when solved, yield a unit of the currency.

   2. a software application that is designed to run this process.

   3. a person or company that engages in this process.

6. (formerly) a person who places or lays explosive mines.

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miner British  

/ ˈmaɪnə /

noun

1. a person who works in a mine

2. Also called: continuous miner. a large machine for the automatic extraction of minerals, esp coal, from a mine

3. any of various insects or insect larvae that bore into and feed on plant tissues See also leaf miner

4. any of several honey-eaters of the genus Manorina, esp M. melanocephala (noisy miner), of scrub regions See noisy miner

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• miners
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of miner

First recorded in 1225–75; mine ² + -er ¹; replacing Middle English minour, from Anglo-French ( see -or ²)

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Explanation

Picture a hardhat, a headlamp and a pick, and you are on the right track. A miner is a person who makes a living digging coal, salt, gold, minerals, or other natural resources out of the earth. The root here is the noun mine—not the word that possessive toddlers like to shout, but the one that describes a man-made underground network of tunnels and quarries. Don’t confuse miner with minor (note the “o”). Minor refers to musical intervals, small or trivial things, and people under age 18.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

miner miners

Bevan, the son of a miner, had spent time underground and was all too familiar with the lack of control ordinary people had over their working lives and living conditions.

From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2026

The iron-ore miner held guidance steady for shipments, but said the outlook hinged on securing a deal with China Mineral Resources Group.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

The stock fell more than 6% after the Chilean miner gave tepid guidance for production next year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026

For the full year, the London-listed miner said it continues to expect copper production in the range of 625,000 to 655,000 tons compared with the 653,700 tons reported for 2025.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

He writes: Most likely at least one adult — probably a coal miner from Poland, Czechoslovakia, or Italy — brought the virus to Limburg.

From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell

Some miners, like CleanSpark, view bitcoin mining as a bridge toward developing its data-center projects.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

It pays the miners to leave and spends the savings on a bigger drill.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2026

Once miners unplug their mining rigs, they give up the daily crypto revenue that once helped sustain their capital expenditures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

Crypto miners use some of the same kind of physical infrastructure that is used to develop AI.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

As the afternoon wore on, I began feeling like the miners from years ago, covered in grime.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

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Related Words

• prospector

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