What does "mince" mean?
Mince: To suppress or weaken the force of; to extenuate; to palliate; to tell by degrees, instead of directly and frankly; to clip, as words or expressions; to utter half and keep back half of. I know no ways to mince it in love, but directly to say -- "I love you." Shak. Siren, now mince the sin, And mollify damnation with a phrase. Dryden. If, to mince his meaning, I had either omitted some part of what he said, or taken from the strength of his expression, I certainly had wronged him. Dryden.
Additional senses
- 2.To affect; to make a parade of. [R.] Shak.
- 3.To walk with short steps; to walk in a prim, affected manner. The daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes,... mincing as they go. Is. iii.
- 4.I 'll... turn two mincing steps Into a manly stride. Shak.
- 5.To act or talk with affected nicety; to affect delicacy in manner.
- 6.A short, precise step; an affected manner.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00