minesweeper

American

[mahyn-swee-per] / ˈmaɪnˌswi pər /

noun

Navy.

a specially equipped ship used for dragging a body of water in order to remove or destroy enemy mines.

minesweeper British

/ ˈmaɪnˌswiːpə /

noun

a naval vessel equipped to detect and clear mines

"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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

minesweeping

noun

Etymology

Origin of minesweeper

First recorded in 1900–05; mine ² + sweeper

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.

The country’s minesweeper squadron is based in the port of Kiel on the Baltic Sea coast and includes some 12 minehunting and clearance diving vessels.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Leona Woods Marshall Libby: My brother-in-law was a captain of the first bombs’ minesweeper scheduled into Sasebo harbor.

From Scientific American • Jul. 20, 2023

State television’s military channel identified the ships being sent as the guided missile frigate Yulin and the minesweeper hunter Chibi.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 26, 2023

Dame Mary Richardson has been told by one family member that his step father was an 18-year-old sailor serving on a minesweeper which was in the area at the time.

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2023

Now the last of our minesweeper destroyers, the Anthony, opened up.

From "Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two" by Joseph Bruchac

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023