minion

[min-yuh n]

See more synonyms for minion on Thesaurus.com

noun

a servile follower or subordinate of a person in power.
a favored or highly regarded person.
a minor official.

Printing. a 7-point type.

adjective

dainty; elegant; trim; pretty.

Origin of minion

1490–1500; < Middle French mignon, for Old French mignot dainty < ?

Can be confusedminion minyan

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for minion

slave, stooge, lackey, dependent, parasite, follower, groupie, puppet, flatterer, subordinate, toady, fan, hanger-on, flunky, doormat, backscratcher, bootlicker

Examples from the Web for minion

Contemporary Examples of minion

Pranab Mukherjee, a minion brought in primarily to help speed up bank loans to Sanjay, is currently the president of India.
Hold Onto Your Penis
David Frum, Justin Green
November 29, 2012
Even worse, Rajiv Shah, the new head of USAID, is a Hillary “minion,” as one insider puts it, who has hardly put up a fight.
Hillary's Power Grab
Tara McKelvey
January 14, 2011

Historical Examples of minion

But here was a minion of Cynthia riding the country like Paul Revere.
Dwellers in the Hills
Melville Davisson Post
T will do no harm, and may—ay, this minion will sweep the Rock like a new broom.
Standish of Standish
Jane G. Austin
Enthroned on the dais, a minion at his feet, he was momentarily monarchial.
Gigolo
Edna Ferber
I will have a garment reach to my taile; Then am I a minion, for I weare the new guise.
The Romany Rye
George Borrow
Am I not something more to thee, than the partner of joyous hours—the minion of love?
Rienzi
Edward Bulwer Lytton

British Dictionary definitions for minion

minion

noun

a favourite or dependant, esp a servile or fawning one
a servile agentthe minister's minions
a size of printer's type, approximately equal to 7 point

adjective

dainty, pretty, or elegant

Word Origin for minion

C16: from French mignon, from Old French mignot, of Gaulish origin

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 minion

c.1500, "a favorite; a darling; a low dependant; one who pleases rather than benefits" [Johnson], from Middle French mignon "a favorite, darling" (n.), also a term of (probably homosexual) abuse;" as an adjective, "dainty, pleasing, favorite," from Old French mignot "pretty, attractive, dainty, gracious, affectionate," perhaps of Celtic origin (cf. Old Irish min "tender, soft"), or from Old High German minnja, minna "love, memory" (see mind (n.)). Used 16c.-17c. without disparaging overtones.