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minor league

1 American  
[mahy-ner leeg] / ˈmaɪ nər ˈlig /

noun

Sports.

  1. any association of professional teams other than the major leagues, as in baseball, especially when the member teams are associated with or controlled by major-league teams, which use them as training and proving teams for promising players.

minor-league 2 American  
[mahy-ner-leeg] / ˈmaɪ nərˈlig /

adjective

  1. Sports. of or relating to the minor leagues, especially in baseball.

  2. Informal. of little import or consequence.

    a painter with minor-league talent.
    Synonyms:
    second-rate, lesser, insignificant
minor league British  

noun

  1. any professional league in baseball other than a major league Compare major league

  2. (modifier) of relatively little importance

    that firm is very minor league
"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

  • minor leaguer noun
  • minor-leaguer noun

Etymology

Origin of minor league1

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85

Origin of minor-league2

An Americanism dating back to 1930–35; adjective use of minor league ( def. )

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.

In his minor league career, Klein struck out 13 batters every nine innings, which is tremendous.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 3, 2026

“After three or four innings, there is a line change, and minor league players are coming in. I think being able to maintain a high level of play in these back-side innings speaks to depth.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2026

Left-hander Jackson Ferris, the Dodgers’ minor league pitcher of the year in 2024, will start Sunday’s game against the San Diego Padres at the Peoria Sports Complex.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 20, 2026

The official name of Long Beach’s new minor league baseball team was announced Tuesday along with the name of its “alter ego”: the Long Beach Regulators.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 14, 2026

But all these were minor league teams that played only in local and regional contests.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.