minesweeper

American  

[mahyn-swee-per] / ˈmaɪnˌswi pər /

noun

Navy.

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

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minesweeper British  

/ ˈmaɪnˌswiːpə /

noun

1. a naval vessel equipped to detect and clear mines

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Other Word Forms

• minesweeping noun

Etymology

Origin of minesweeper

First recorded in 1900–05; mine ² + sweeper

Example Sentences

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

Born in Bristol in 1932, Hodges worked as a chartered accountant and spent two years serving on a Royal Navy minesweeper around fishing ports in the north of England.

From BBC • Dec. 21, 2022

Born in the English port city of Bristol in 1932, Hodges trained as an accountant and did two years of compulsory military service aboard a Royal Navy minesweeper, visiting poor coastal communities around England.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 21, 2022

The “old Fisherman with a Net” was probably a minesweeper.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield