countermine
Americannoun
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Military. a mine intended to intercept or destroy an enemy mine.
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a counterplot.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
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to make a countermine.
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Military. to intercept or destroy enemy mines.
noun
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military a tunnel dug to defeat similar activities by an enemy
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a plot to frustrate another plot
verb
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to frustrate by countermeasures
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military to take measures to defeat the underground operations of (an enemy)
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military to destroy enemy mines in (an area) with mines of one's own
Etymology
Origin of countermine
late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; see origin at counter-, mine 2
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.
See Examples For:
A U.S. defense official said the military was using a combination of manned and unmanned capabilities in the countermine operation, but declined to comment on operational specifics.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 19, 2026
Navy’s countermine capabilities as it retires traditional minesweepers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 19, 2026
Extremely few flag officers ever served as countermine officers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026
The growing modern mine threat is so significant, that the Navy has been fast-tracking a wide range of new countermine attack and defense strategies.
From Fox News ● Feb. 28, 2020
But if the defenders are active, they will countermine.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 6 "Foraminifera" to "Fox, Edward" by Various
They mined and countermined, until the whole area had been honeycombed.
From A Breeze from the Woods, 2nd Ed. by William Chauncey Bartlett
Sedition has, at last, countermined itself, and conspiracy we have seen in effect perishing by its own excesses.
From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine — Volume 54, No. 337, November, 1843 by Various
I fear, Mr. Editor, the grand conspiracy is in danger of being countermined and counteracted, by those all-pervading and indefatigable Yankees.
From Wolfert's Roost and Miscellanies by Washington Irving
The officer at the mining-key knows from the spark that jumps across under his hand that the enemy has countermined and the harbor is clear.
From Harper's Round Table, October 29, 1895 by Various
But he had to deal with a shrewd opponent; and while he took his measures for a combined attack from the besieged and the relieving army, Ferdinand intercepted his messages and countermined his plans.
From The Moors in Spain by Stanley Lane-Poole
And many a U.S. diplomat, busily countermining the British, worries more about them than he does about the Russians.
From Time Magazine Archive
Whilst they played wits against me—against me who commanded nations, and intrigued for them, and fought for them, hundreds of years before they were born—I was countermining them.
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
Having imparted this discovery to his friend Hatchway, they came to a resolution of countermining the plan of their enemies.
From The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle by T. (Tobias) Smollett
On sentry in the firebay, or the hov'ring 'plane, Mining and countermining yet again.
From Over the Top With the Third Australian Division by Neil McBeath
She would have considerable pleasure in countermining Mr. and Mrs. Tappitt.
From Rachel Ray by Anthony Trollope
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