minefield

Etymology

It is formed from English mine + field,^[2][3][4] from mine in the sense of an explosive device, used from 1866 of weapons under water and by 1890 of land mines.^[3] Parallel compounds exist in other languages, such as Dutch mijnenveld, German Minenfeld and Swedish minfält.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

An area in which explosive mines have been laid: 1884, in the China Mail.^[2][5][6] Etymonline dates the word to 1877,^[3] and Dictionary.com to 1885–90.^[4]

Semantic evolution

The first minefields were laid at sea as well as on land,^[5] and the figurative sense of a situation or subject full of hidden dangers followed in the 20th century: Etymonline finds it by 1947,^[3] the OED in 1963.^[2][6]

Timeline

• 1884 – an area in which explosive mines have been laid.^[2][5]
• 1963 – figuratively, a situation full of hidden dangers.^[2][6] Etymonline dates this sense to 1947.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. An area of land or water in which explosive mines have been laid: The patrol was trapped in a minefield.^[7][5][2]
2. A situation or subject full of hidden dangers or problems: Tax law can be a minefield for small firms.^[7][5][2][8]

Related words

• mine
• field
• landmine

Usage notes

The OED also records a rare sense "mining district" from 1898, probably formed separately from mine in the sense of a pit for minerals.^[2]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)
7. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
8. ^ The Chambers Dictionary (2014), 13th ed., Edinburgh: Chambers