mincemeat

[ mins-meet ]

noun

1. a mixture composed of minced apples, raisins, currants, candied citron, suet, etc., originally and traditionally also containing meat, for filling a pie.
2. meat that is ground up or cut in very small pieces.

mincemeat

/ ˈmɪnsˌmiːt /

noun

1. a mixture of dried fruit, spices, etc, used esp for filling pies
2. minced meat
3. make mincemeat of informal.
   to defeat completely

Word History and Origins

Origin of mincemeat¹

First recorded in 1655–65; mince + meat

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. make mincemeat of, to destroy utterly:

   He made mincemeat of his opponent's charges.

More idioms and phrases containing mincemeat

see make mincemeat of .

Example Sentences

Mr. Christie first ran for president in 2016, a year that made mincemeat of quite a few Republicans seen as rising stars in the party, and he was no exception.

From New York Times

Mr. Ramaswamy makes mincemeat out of blithering idiots in the media like “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd, who honestly tried making a scientific, biological argument that there is a whole broad “spectrum” of genders.

From Washington Times

The greed of the overlord class, mimicked by the grasping Mrs. Lovett, is what makes mincemeat of the proletariat.

From New York Times

The Ukrainians have made mincemeat of the Russians, evident in last year’s successful counteroffensives south of Kharkiv and in Kherson.

From Seattle Times

The EU's chief negotiator Maros Šefčovic said that lorries entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain would only require a three-page certificate, though separate certification would still be needed for higher-risk goods such as chilled mincemeat.

From BBC