Mimusops 
Mimusops (mi-mu'sops), n. [NL. (Linnaeus, 
1753), so called from the fancied resemblances 
of the flowers to an ape's face ; < Gr. fufiovs, gen. 
o[U/n&, an ape (< iup.eln6ai, imitate, pi/toi;, an im- 
itator: see mime), + uip, face.] A genus of 
dicotyledonous gamopetalous plants of the nat- 
3770 
of several different sturnoid passerine birds of 
India and countries further east, (a) Any spe- 
cies of the genus Acridotheres (which see), (ft) Any species 
of the genus Evlabes, several of which inhabit India, Cey- 
lon, Java, Sumatra, Borneo, etc. ; a hill-mina. (See hill-mi- 
na, and cut under Eulabes.) The common talking starling 
or religious grackle of India is E. (formerly Oracitla) reli- 
minch-house 
Mynee that plouer. Babees Book (E. E. T. S.), p. 265. 
When she saw Pyrrhus make malicious sport 
In mincing with his sword her husband's limbs. 
Shale., Hamlet, ii. 2. 587. 
They brought some cold bacon and coarse oat-cake. The 
sergeant asked for pepper and salt, minced the food flue, 
1/iosa, of a purplish-black color with a white mirror on the and made " savol '5'- Mrs - <*, s >' lvla ' s Covers, x**"'- 
in speaking; speak of lightly or slightingly; 
minimize. 
ural order Sapotacece and the tribe Bumelieie. . . _ _ 
It is characterized by having the six or eight segments win . yellow bill and feet, and curious leafy lappets of a 2. To lessen ; diminish ; especially, to diminish 
of the calyx arranged in two series, the outer ones includ- yellow or orange color on the head. It is easily tamed and ; ,,!,; ], .Vis-CTrL. -"'-U-T-U- 
ing the inner, which are more slender ; the lobes of the 
corolla entire and three times as many as the calyx-seg- 
ments ; and the six or eight staminodia, which are alter- - , 
nate with the same number of stamens. They are trees, or mina-bird (mi na-berd), n. Same as 
rarely shrubs, with a milky juice, and usually small white minablet (mi'na-bl), a. IX mine 2 + 
flowers, which are often fragrant in axillary clusters. Cann.blp of hpi mi^prl. 
About 30 species are known, found throughout the tropics. 
Several, from India and Ceylon, yield a heavy durable 
timber, and M. Elengi also produces small edible berries, 
yellow or orange color on the head. It is easily tamed and 
taught to speak with singular distinctness. This and some 
other members of the same genus are common cage-birds 
in Europe and the United States. 
_ -able.] 
Capable of being mined. 
He began to undermine it (finding the earth all about 
very minable). North, tr. of Plutarch, p. 115. 
minacious (mi-na'shus), a. [= It. minaceioso, 
an extended form of minace = Pg. minaz, < L. 
minax (minac-), full of threats: see menace, n.] 
(cf . min, adv. ) = MD. mindre, D. minder = MLG. minacious countenance. 
min, minner, minder = OHG. minniro, MHG . min- Dr. H. More, Mystery of Godliness, p. 63. 
ner, minre, G. minder = Icel. minnr = Sw. Dan. minacity (mi-nas'i-ti), n. [< L. minax (minac-), 
mmdre = Goth, minniza, compar., less; cf. OS. threatening, minacious (see menace), + -ity.] 
minnisto = OFries. minnmt = D. MLG. minst = Disposition to threaten. Coles, 1717. [Rare.] 
OHG. minnist, MHG. minnest, G. mindest = Icel. minar (mi-nar'), . [Ar. minar, a candlestick 
mmnst=Sw. minst = Dan. mindst = Goth, min- lamp, lighthouse (cf. Heb. manordh, a candle- 
msts (cf. mins, mine, adv.), superl., least; com- stick); cf. nar, fire, nur, light, nawwir, enlight- 
par. and superl. (reduced in the compar. min, as en, illumine, Heb. nur, shine.] In Moslem 
in bet for better, less, etc.), = L. compar. minor, arch., a lighthouse ; a tower; a minaret. 
neut. minus, less (superl. minimus, least), posi- 
tive stem *minu-, whence minuere, lessen (see 
minish, minuend, etc.), = Gr. /unvf, little, small 
(not in good use, but assumed or revived as the 
In the burning sun the golden dome [of a mosque in the 
city of Meshed] seemed to cast out rays of dazzling light, 
and the roofs of the adjoining minors shone like brilliant 
beacons. ffDonovan, Merv, vi. 
base of the derived forms fuvvBem, lessen, /mw- minaret (min'a-ret), n. [= P. minaret = Pg. 
a, a little, etc. ) ; cf . Ir. min, small ; perhaps Skt. 
-/ mi (present stem mina-), make less. Hence, 
from L., minor, minus, minority, etc., minister, 
administer, etc., minim, minimum, minimize, 
minute*-, minute^, minish, diminish, comminute, 
etc.; from E., mince, minnow, etc.] Less. 
The more and the minne. 
Le Bane Florence (Ritson's Met. Horn., III.), 1. 549. 
It is of the for to forgyfe 
Alkyn tryspas both more & mynn. 
Political Poems, etc. (ed. Furnivall), p. 104. 
min 3 t (min), n. [ME., also minne, mynne, < Icel. 
minni, memory, remembrance; cf. OS. minna, 
minareto = It. minar eto, minaretto, < 
Sp. minarete, < Turk, minare = Hind. 
mindra, minar, a high slender tow- 
er, a minaret, < Ar. mandra, a lamp, 
lighthouse, minaret, < minor, candle- 
stick, lamp, lighthouse: see minar.'] 
In Moslem arch., a slender and lofty 
turret typically rising by several 
stages or stories, and surrounded 
by one or more projecting balco- 
nies, characteristic of Mohammedan 
mosques, and corresponding to the 
belfry of a Christian church. From 
minnia = OHG. minna, MHG. minne G (re- the balconie s of the minarets the people are 
vived^ minnn. IOVP,. orio- 'mpmn'- oVi,, t/In! summoned to prayer five times a day by 
vived) minne, love, orig. 'memory': akin to E. 
mine 3 , mindl, etc.: see mine 3 , mind 1 .} Mem- 
ory; remembrance. 
min s t (min), v. t. [< ME. minnen, mynnen, < Icel. 
minna, bring to mind, < minni, mind, memory: 
"~ a , n. Cf. mine 3 .] 1. To bring to the minargent (mi-nar'jent), n. 
mind of ; remind. 
Syr, of one thinge I wolle you mynne, 
And beseche you for to spede. 
MS. Harl. 2252, f. 88. (Balliwell.) 
2. To remember. 
The clowdys ovyr-caste, all lyst was leste, 
Hys myst was more then ye myjt mynne. 
MS. Cantab. Ff. ii. 38, i. 47. (Halliwell.) 
Euery psalme qwencheth a synne 
As ofte as a man thoth hem mynne. 
Political Poems, etc. (ed. Furnivall), p. 90. 
3. To mention. 
criers. See muezzin, and cut under mosque. 
Another [mosque] has a very high minaret 
or tower, the out side of which is entirely 
cased with green tiles. 
Pococke, Description of the East, II. i. 121. 
[<NL. 
Palomydon put hym full prestly to say, 
And meuit of his mater, that I mynnet are. 
Destruction of Troy (E. E. T. S.), 1. 8876. 
min 4 (min), n. [Perhaps a familiar var. of mam 1 , 
mama.] Mother. [Scotch.] 
I'm Johnny Faa o' Yetholm town, 
There dwall my min and daddie O. 
Johnnie Faa (Child's Ballads, IV. 284). 
min 5 (min), n. A dialectal or affected form of 
man. 
min. 
cal, minimum, minute, minim, and minor. 
minal (mi'na), n. [L., also man, < Gr. pva, a m ! nbar . fee mimbar. 
weight, a sum of money; < Heb. manelt, a """^ mus .)> 
weight, prop, part, portion, number, < mdndh, 
divide, measure out, allot.] A unit of weight 
and of value, originally Assyrian, but used also 
by the Greeks and other ancient peoples. Bronze 
and stone Babylonian and Assyrian standards show that 
there were two Assyrian minas, one varying from 960 to 
1,040 grams, and the other of half that weight. The As- 
syrians divided the mina into 60 shekels, and 60 minas 
made a talent. In Athens at the time of Pericles it was, 
in weight of silver, 100 drachmas, equivalent to 436.3 grams, 
or 15.4 ounces avoirdupois, or 14 + ounces troy, and was in 
v:uue about $18. 
[The Babylonians] constituted a new mina for them- 
selves, consisting of 50 shekels instead of 60. 
B. V. Head, Historia Numorum, Int., p. xxxii. 
mina 2 (mi'na), ii. 
and maina; "( 
(alu)min(ium) + L.' argentum, sil- 
ver.] A kind of aluminium bronze, 
the ingredients of which are copper 
1,000 parts, nickel 700, antimony 50, 
and aluminium 20. Minaret. 
minatorial (min-a-to'ri-al), a. [< Mosque of 
minatory + -al.] Threatening ; men- nanUnopfeT 
acing. 
minatorially (min-a-to'ri-al-i),<fc. In a threat- 
ening or menacing manner. mincer 
minatorily (min'a-to-ri-li), adv. In a minatory 
manner ; with threats. 
minatory (min'a-to-ri), a. [= It. minatorio, < mincht (minch), . 
LL. minatorius, 'threatening (cf. minator, one form of minchen.] 
who drives cattle), < L. minari, pp. minatus, w fM- 
threaten, drive: see menace.] Threatening; minchent (min'ehen), n 
The king made a statute monitory and minatory, towards 
justices of peace, that they should duly execute their office. 
Bacon, Hist. Hen. VII., p. 76. 
Thy honesty and love doth mince this matter, 
Making it light to Cassio. Shak. , Othello, ii. 3. 248. 
For though shee held her to the commandment, yet the 
threatening annexed shee did somewhat mince and extenu- 
ate. Purchas, Pilgrimage, p. 25. 
Be gone, Futelli ! do not mince one syllable 
Of what you hear. Ford, Lady's Trial, i. 3. 
What say the soldiers of me ? and the same words ; 
Mince 'em not, good Aecius, but deliver 
The very forms and tongues they talk withal. 
Fletcher, Valentinian, i. 3. 
3. To utter primly ; bring or show forth spar- 
ingly or in a half-spoken way ; hence, to display 
with affected delicacy; use affectation in re- 
gard to: as, to mince one's words or a narra- 
tive ; to mince the lapses of one's neighbors ; a 
minced oath. 
Behold yon simpering dame, . . . 
That minces virtue, and doth shake the head 
To hear of pleasure's name. Shak., Lear, iv. 6. 122. 
4. To effect minciugly. [Bare.] 
To the ground 
Three times she bows, and with a modest grace 
Minces her spruce retreat. 
J. Beaumont, Psyche, iii. 182. 
Minced collops. See collop. Minced pie. See mince- 
pie. To mince matters, to speak of things with affect- 
ed delicacy. 
II. intrans. 1. To walk with short steps or 
with affected nicety; affect delicacy in man- 
ner. 
Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, . . . walk- 
ing and mincing as they go. Isa. iii. 16. 
Away, I say ; time wears : hold up your head and mince. 
Shak.,M.. W. of W., v. 1. 9. 
2. To speak with affected elegance. 
Low spake the lass, and lisp'd and minced the while 
Crabbe, Works, I. 76. 
mince (mins), w. [< mince(-meat).] Same as 
mince-meat. 
Upsetting whatever came in his way now a pan of 
milk, and now a basin of mince. 
H. B. Stowe, Oldtown, p. 342. 
mince-meat (mins 'met), n. [Prop, minced 
meat.] 1. Meat chopped small; hence, any- 
thing chopped or broken into small pieces, lit- 
erally or figuratively. 
Their first shot struck us in the bows, knocked our two 
gunners into mince meat. 
R. L. Stevenson, Master of Ballantrae, ii. 
2. The material of which mince-pies are made. 
Also called minced meat and mince. 
mince-pie (mins'pi'), n. \_<mince(-meat) +piel.] 
A pie made with minced meat, fruit, etc. It has 
long been especially associated with Christmas 
festivities among English-speaking peoples. 
Also called minced pie. 
oincer (min'ser), n. One who minces. 
Mincers of each other's fame. 
Tennyson, Princess, iv. 
[< ME.mynche; a reduced 
Same as minclien. Halli- 
The minatory proclamation issued last week by the Czar 
An abbreviation of mineralogy, mineraloqi- *? I'* fartm alitly Sev., N. 8., 
tinimum. minute,, minim, a/nri ; u . minaul (mi-nal ), n. Same as monaul. 
3 mini 
. . i\ ; pret. and pp. minced, ppr. 
mincing. [< ME. *mincen, *myncen, minsen, (a) 
partly < AS. minsian, make less, become less, 
diminish (cf. verbal n. minsung, parsimony, 
abstinence) (= OS. minson, make less, = Goth. 
minznau, become less) ; with formative -s (as 
tive -*), < min, less (see mint) ; ( partly < OF 
mincer F. mincer, cut small < mime lender' 
slight, puny, prob. of Tent, origin, perhaps from 
the superl. of min, less (see i<2), or more prob. 
the adj. mince is a back formation from the 
verb mincer, which is then < OS. minson, etc., 
make small: see above.] I. trans. 1. To make 
[Also mynchen, min- 
cheon, minchun; < ME. minchen, monchen, mune- 
chene, < AS. myneceu, myneoymt, pi. mynecena, 
munecena, a nun, fern, of munuc, a monk: see 
monk.] A nun. 
Mincheon Lane, so called of tenements there sometime 
pertaining to the minchuns, or nuns of St. Helen's in 
Bishopgate Street. 
Stow, Survey of London, quoted in N. and Q., 7th ser., 
[III. 314. 
mincheryt (min'cher-i), n. [Also mynchery ; < 
minch, minchen, + -ry.] A nunnery. 
In telling how Begu, within the minchery at Hackness 
was miraculously given to know of St. Hilda's death, miles 
away, at Whitby, etc. 
Rock, Church of our Fathers, ii. 297. 
minch-houset, [Perhaps a dial, corruption 
of men's house, a cottage attached to a farm- 
house, where the men-servants cook their vic- 
tuals (Jamieson).] A roadside inn. 
Then lay at a minch-house in the road, being a good inne 
for the country ; for most of the public houses I mett with 
before In country places were no better than ale houses, 
which they call here minch-housei. . . . Oott to Lesma- 
hago, which I found to be but a small village, but in it is 
w. [Also mino, myna, munali, less; make small; specifically, to exit or chorj a ort of in i le or mi } ah -. hmse ot considerable note kept by 
Hind, maina, a starling.] One into very small pieces : as, to , mince meat. " * anner ' ~ t d $gd ln N . a>td <,, ., vl . 44 . 
