I. mince 1 /mɪns/ BrE AmE verb
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: mincier , from Latin minutia 'smallness' ; ⇨ ↑ minutiae ]
1 . [transitive] ( also mince something ↔ up ) to cut food, especially meat, into very small pieces, usually using a machine:
minced lamb
Mince the meat up with some onion and garlic.
2 . [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] to walk with very quick, short steps in a way that looks unnatural or silly:
She was mincing about in her high-heeled shoes.
3 . not mince (your) words to say exactly what you think, even if this might offend people:
Tom didn’t mince words and told me straight away that I had failed.
II. mince 2 BrE AmE noun [uncountable] British English
meat, especially ↑ beef , that has been cut into very small pieces using a special machine SYN ground beef American English