miner

[ mahy-ner ]

/ ˈmaɪ nər /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR miner ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

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

a mechanical device used in mining: a miner for extracting ores from the ocean floor.

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

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

(formerly) a person who places or lays military or naval mines.

Nearby words

Origin of miner

1225–75; mine² + -er¹; replacing Middle English minour < Anglo-French (see -or²)

Can be confusedminer minor myna

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for miner

If a woman wants to be a teacher rather than a miner, or a veterinarian rather than a petroleum engineer, more power to her.
No, Women Don’t Make Less Money Than Men|Christina Hoff Sommers|February 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“She called me a couple of years before she died,” Miner said.
The True Life of Marilyn Chambers, the ‘Other’ Queen of Porn|Christine Pelisek|August 19, 2013|DAILY BEAST
“Hers is not a story about a victim but a protagonist that makes bad choices,” Miner says.
The True Life of Marilyn Chambers, the ‘Other’ Queen of Porn|Christine Pelisek|August 19, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Stanley also took on the cases of the mother and siblings of a miner killed at Upper Big Branch.
Laurence Leamer on Coal Baron Donald Blankenship’s Downfall|Laurence Leamer|May 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST

The miner does that journey to and fro, and sandwiched in between there are seven and a half hours of savage work.
Thatcher's Economic Legacy|Megan McArdle|April 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Fred found he could easily keep up with the small animal, and the miner chatted pleasantly until they came to New Strike.
The Young Treasure Hunter|Frank V. Webster
A miner's son is chosen to shake Europe, and a cobbler to kindle anew the missionary fires of Christendom.
Quiet Talks on Power|S.D. Gordon
In this way the miner travels in succession over every point of his field, and can pourtray its basin-shape most minutely.
A Dictionary of Arts, Manufactures and Mines|Andrew Ure
Wesley never had a more earnest follower than this miner of St. Just.
Deep Down, a Tale of the Cornish Mines|R.M. Ballantyne
"I reckon I can stop that," was the miner's laconic comment.
The Tyranny of the Dark|Hamlin Garland

British Dictionary definitions for miner

miner

/ (ˈmaɪnə) /

noun

a person who works in a mine

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

any of various insects or insect larvae that bore into and feed on plant tissuesSee also leaf miner

Australian any of several honey-eaters of the genus Manorina, esp M. melanocephala (noisy miner), of scrub regionsSee noisy miner

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

Word Origin and History for miner