mincing

[ min-sing ]
See synonyms for mincing on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. (of the gait, speech, behavior, etc.) affectedly dainty, nice, or elegant.

Origin of mincing

1
First recorded in 1520–30; mince + -ing2

Other words from mincing

  • minc·ing·ly, adverb
  • un·minc·ing, adjective

Words Nearby mincing

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use mincing in a sentence

  • I must venture to add, without mincing the matter, what I really believe, of this Book.

  • There were whisperings below, and apparently a hurried consultation, and then a young woman came mincing up the stairs.

    A Little Union Scout | Joel Chandler Harris
  • After the world of politics, with its hair-splitting and word-mincing, it was good to be with soldiers—the men who do the work.

    The Relief of Mafeking | Filson Young
  • I have heard it said of ladies who walk with a mincing gait that "she steps out like a hen before day."

British Dictionary definitions for mincing

mincing

/ (ˈmɪnsɪŋ) /


adjective
  1. (of a person) affectedly elegant in gait, manner, or speech

Derived forms of mincing

  • mincingly, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012