mince

American  

[mins] / mɪns /

verb (used with object)

• minces,
  present (3rd person singular)
• minced,
  past participle,  past
• mincing
  present participle

1. to cut or chop into very small pieces.

2. to soften, moderate, or weaken (one's words), especially for the sake of decorum or courtesy.

3. to perform or utter with affected elegance.

4. to subdivide minutely, as land or a topic for study.

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verb (used without object)

• minces,
  present (3rd person singular)
• minced,
  past participle,  past
• mincing
  present participle

1. to walk or move with short, affectedly dainty steps.

2. Archaic. to act or speak with affected elegance.

noun

1. something cut up very small; mincemeat.

idioms

1. not mince words / matters, to speak directly and frankly; be blunt or outspoken.

   He was angry and didn't mince words.

mince British  

/ mɪns /

verb

1. (tr) to chop, grind, or cut into very small pieces

2. (tr) to soften or moderate, esp for the sake of convention or politeness

   I didn't mince my words

3. (intr) to walk or speak in an affected dainty manner

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noun

1. minced meat

2. informal nonsensical rubbish

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mincer
  noun
• unminced
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• mincing
  present
• minced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• mince
  simple
• minces
  simple
• have minced
  perfect
• has minced
  perfect
• am mincing
  progressive
• are mincing
  progressive
• is mincing
  progressive
• have been mincing
  perfect progressive
• has been mincing
  perfect progressive

Past

• minced
  simple
• had minced
  perfect
• was mincing
  progressive
• were mincing
  progressive
• had been mincing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will mince
  simple
• will have minced
  perfect
• will be mincing
  progressive
• will have been mincing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of mince

1350–1400; Middle English mincen < Middle French minc ( i ) er < Vulgar Latin *minūtiāre to mince; see minute ²

Explanation

To mince is to chop into tiny bits. Your favorite soup recipe might include directions to mince four cloves of garlic. When you dice an onion into very small pieces, you mince it, and when you grind meat very fine to make sausage or mincemeat, you also mince. Another meaning of the verb is to soften, or to express something in a gentle way: "She doesn't mince her words." This word can also mean to walk in a dainty manner, like the way your 7-year-old niece might mince across the floor while pretending to be a fancy princess. The Old French root, mincier, means "make into small pieces," and it comes from the Latin word for "small," minutus.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mince minces minced mincing

After years of silence on the largest cheating scheme English soccer has ever seen, the Premier League didn’t mince words on Tuesday.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

Today it's $11.95, but profits are limited due to the much higher price of mince.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

Deeply affected by the ordeal and still in shock, the 48-year-old did not mince his words regarding the authorities, who he believes failed to sufficiently clear the undergrowth in the surrounding countryside.

From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026

But when Rodrigo was asked to respond to the controversy on The New York Times’ Popcast, she didn’t mince words, pointing out that she’s worn more revealing outfits on stage with less pushback.

From Salon ● Jun. 12, 2026

He chopped the onions every which way and didn’t mince the ginger anywhere near as fine as Kazi would have.

From "The Night Diary" by Veera Hiranandani

It minces onions when my joints aren’t cooperating, even with a good knife.

From Salon ● Apr. 21, 2026

A shrewd operator who rarely minces his words, an increasingly wealthy Thaksin entered politics in the mid-1990s, initially serving as foreign minister and then deputy prime minister.

From Reuters ● Aug. 22, 2023

Among the other turns, Bobby Smith minces drolly as human candelabra Lumiere, and Dylan Arredondo is aptly pompous as the clock-ish Cogsworth.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 14, 2021

Brian Cox minces no words in his new book when it comes to some of Hollywood’s revered actors.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2021

Mama is a blur of activity as she minces a huge pile of onions and garlic in a mini chopper and puts a jumbo pot on the stove.

From "Amina's Voice" by Hena Khan

Apart from poppy seeds, the product also contains sesame seeds, sea salt, minced garlic and minced onion.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

Add minced garlic, minced ginger and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026

They are suing TKS Restaurants, parent company to The Kebab Shop, which operates in California, Texas and Florida, as well as Olympia Food Industries Inc., the Illinois manufacturer that supplied the minced beef.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 31, 2026

Overall longevity decreases greatly when dealing with chopped or minced garlic, which can go bad within a day, even when stored in the refrigerator.

From Salon ● Apr. 19, 2026

I see flaky crust with minced meat, onions, tomatoes, and lettuce.

From "Towers Falling" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Perhaps you find that your enthusiasm reliably stalls at the thought of mincing garlic.

From Salon ● Jan. 5, 2026

Both faculty and students are mincing their words in class and approaching their discussions with caution for fear of being reported, said Wright State University junior Rochelle Woodson.

From Salon ● Sep. 22, 2025

Good on the Getty for not mincing visual words.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2025

His soft, thoughtful delivery forces the listener to take note and when he speaks he is usually very direct, rarely mincing his words.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2024

He moved on stiff legs with little delicate mincing steps to investigate the newcomer and in the manner of dogs and people did not look directly at the object of his interest.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

Related Words

• crumble
• grind