Minuteman

[ min-it-man ]

/ ˈmɪn ɪtˌmæn /

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noun, plural Min·ute·men.

(sometimes lowercase) a member of a group of American militiamen just before and during the Revolutionary War who held themselves in readiness for instant military service.

a U.S. intercontinental ballistic missile with three stages, powered by solid-propellant rocket engines.

a member of a small, secret, ultraconservative organization formed into armed groups for the declared purpose of conducting guerrilla warfare against a communist invasion of the U.S.

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Origin of Minuteman

An Americanism dating back to 1765–75; minute¹ + man

Words nearby Minuteman

minus sign, minute, minute gun, minute hand, minutely, Minuteman, minute mark, Minutemen, minutes, minute steak, minutiae

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Minuteman in a sentence

That’s DeJon Jarreau, formerly a Massachusetts Minuteman, who also happens to be the team’s best defender.
The transfer portal has taken Houston, Baylor, Gonzaga and UCLA to the Final Four|Emily Giambalvo|April 2, 2021|Washington Post
At some point, Forde founded her own outfit, the Minuteman American Defense.
Arizona's Other Shooting Horror|Terry Greene Sterling|January 20, 2011|DAILY BEAST
But I did find a photograph of my brother, dressed as a minuteman, and one of me in costume, too.
My Tea Party History|Jill Lepore|October 5, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The minuteman wanted to go back to ordinary life and his family.
Average Americans|Theodore Roosevelt

It is in its community a sort of intellectual minuteman, always ready to supply to every comer something of interest and pleasure.
Why do we need a public library?|Various
Beyond is Concord, with its bridge, well-site, and bronze minuteman.
Charles Carleton Coffin|William Elliot Griffis, D. D.

British Dictionary definitions for Minuteman

Minuteman

/ (ˈmɪnɪtˌmæn) /

noun plural -men

(sometimes not capital) (in the War of American Independence) a colonial militiaman who promised to be ready to fight at one minute's notice

a US three-stage intercontinental ballistic missile

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