mint

Etymology 1

From Middle English mynt, münet (“money, coin”), from Old English mynet (“coin”), from late Proto-West Germanic *munit, from Latin monēta (“place for making coins, coined money”), from the temple of Juno Moneta (named for Monēta mother of the Muses), where coins were made. Doublet of money and manat. The verb is from the noun; Old English mynetian (“to mint”) is a parallel formation.

noun

1. A building or institution where money (originally, only coins) is produced under government licence.
2. (informal) A vast sum of money; (by extension) a large amount of something.
   That house is worth a mint.
   It must have cost a mint to produce!
   to make a mint
3. (figurative) Any place regarded as a source of unlimited supply; the supply itself.

verb

1. (transitive) To reproduce (coins), usually en masse, under licence.
   For some time past the legal currency in the various Provinces has been insufficient for use. Formerly the two Provinces of Fuchien and Kuangtung minted some large, round copper coins of excellent workmanship that were said, by the people after they were put into circulation, to be convenient. 1914, Wen Pin Wei, chapter IV, in The Currency Problem in China, Columbia University Press, →OCLC, page 111
2. To invent; to forge; to fabricate; to fashion.
   China’s newly minted national parks don’t just safeguard famous keystone species such as Siberian tigers, giant pandas and Hainan gibbons. They are also designed to preserve the shrinking ecosystems that support such iconic wildlife, ranging from sweltering (tropical jungles in the southern province of Hainan to the chilly maple forests of northern Heilongjiang and Jilin Provinces bordering Siberia. November 17 2022, Paul Salopek, “A ‘Slow Storytelling’ Writing and Photography Workshop Boosts Conservation in China”, in National Geographic
3. (transitive, cryptocurrencies) To create a crypto token.
   Coordinate term: mine
   Beeple’s collaged JPG was made, or “minted,” in February as a “nonfungible token,” or NFT. 2021-03-11, Scott Reyburn, “JPG File Sells for $69 Million, as ‘NFT Mania’ Gathers Pace”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

adj

1. (with condition) Like new.
   in mint condition
   Trading card sales have taken off, too. The price of mint condition cards on StockX jumped to an average $775 in January from $280 a year ago. 2021-03-13, Erin Griffith, “From Crypto Art to Trading Cards, Investment Manias Abound”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
2. (numismatics) In near-perfect condition; uncirculated.
3. (philately) Unused with original gum; as issued originally.
4. (Northern England, especially Manchester, Tyneside, slang) Very good.
   And my God, what a house it was – it was mint! In all my life I had never set foot in such a beautiful place. 2014, Holly Hagan, Not Quite a Geordie
5. (UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, slang) Attractive; beautiful; handsome.

Etymology 2

From Middle English mynte, from Old English minte (“mint plant”), from Proto-West Germanic *mintā (“mint”), from Latin menta, probably from a lost Mediterranean language either through Ancient Greek μίνθη (mínthē), μίνθα (míntha) or directly. Akin to Old Norse minta (“mint”).

noun

1. Any plant in the genus Mentha in the family Lamiaceae, typically aromatic with square stems.
2. The flavouring of the plant, either a sweet, a jelly or sauce.
3. Any plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae.
4. A green colour, like that of mint.
   mint:
5. A mint-flavored candy, often eaten to sweeten the smell of the breath.

adj

1. Of a green colour, like that of the mint plant.

Etymology 3

From Middle English minten, from Old English myntan (“to mean, intend, purpose, determine, resolve”), from Proto-West Germanic *muntijan (“to think, consider”), from Proto-Indo-European *men-, *mnā- (“to think”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian mintsje, muntsje (“to aim, target”), Dutch munten (“to aim at, target”), German Low German münten (“to aim at”), German münzen (“to aim at”), Dutch monter (“cheerful, gladsome, spry”), Gothic 𐌼𐌿𐌽𐍃 (muns, “thought, opinion”), Old English munan (“to be mindful of, consider, intend”). More at mind.

verb

1. (intransitive, provincial, Northern England, Scotland) To try, attempt; take aim.
2. (transitive, provincial, Northern England, Scotland) To try, attempt, endeavor; to take aim at; to try to hit; to purpose.
3. (intransitive, chiefly Scotland) To hint; suggest; insinuate.

noun

1. (provincial, Northern England, Scotland) Intent, purpose; an attempt, try; effort, endeavor.