mine

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English min, from Old English mīn — more at my Date: before 12th century my — used before a word beginning with a vowel or h <

this treasure in mine arms — Shakespeare

> or sometimes as a modifier of a preceding noun — archaic except in an elevated style II. pronoun Usage: singular or plural in construction Date: before 12th century that which belongs to me — used without a following noun as a pronoun equivalent in meaning to the adjective my III. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *mina, probably of Celtic origin; akin to Welsh mwyn ore Date: 14th century 1. a. a pit or excavation in the earth from which mineral substances are taken b. an ore deposit 2. a subterranean passage under an enemy position 3. an encased explosive that is placed in the ground or in water and set to explode when disturbed 4. a rich source of supply IV. verb (mined; mining) Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to dig under to gain access or cause the collapse of (an enemy position) b. undermine 2. a. to get (as ore) from the earth b. to extract from a source <

information mined from the files

> 3. to burrow beneath the surface of <

larva that mines leaves

> 4. to place military mines in, on, or under <

mine a harbor

> 5. a. to dig into for ore or metal b. to process for obtaining a natural constituent <

mine the air for nitrogen

> c. to seek valuable material in intransitive verb to dig a mine • miner noun