mill

¹

[ mil ]

noun

1. a factory for certain kinds of manufacture, as paper, steel, or textiles.
2. a building equipped with machinery for grinding grain into flour and other cereal products.
3. a machine for grinding, crushing, or pulverizing any solid substance:

   a coffee mill.

4. any of various machines that modify the shape or size of a workpiece by rotating tools or the work:

   rolling mill.

5. any of various other apparatuses for shaping materials or performing other mechanical operations.
6. a business or institution that dispenses products or services in an impersonal or mechanical manner, as if produced in a factory:

   a divorce mill; a diploma mill.

7. Machinery. a cutter on a milling machine.
8. a steel roller for receiving and transferring an impressed design, as to a calico-printing cylinder or a banknote-printing plate.
9. Mining. a place or set of machinery for crushing or concentrating ore.
10. Slang. a boxing match or fistfight.

verb (used with object)

1. to grind, work, treat, or shape in or with a mill.
2. Coining.
   1. to make a raised edge on (a coin or the like).
   2. to make narrow, radial grooves on the raised edge of (a coin or the like).
3. to beat or stir, as to a froth:

   to mill chocolate.

4. Slang. to beat or strike; fight; overcome.

verb (used without object)

1. to move around aimlessly, slowly, or confusedly, as a herd of cattle (often followed by about or around ).

   Synonyms: wander, roam, throng, swarm, crowd

2. Slang. to fight or box.

mill

²

[ mil ]

noun

1. a unit of monetary value equal to 0.001 of a U.S. dollar; one tenth of a cent: used at various times and places in the U.S. as a money of account, especially in certain tax rates.

Mill

³

[ mil ]

noun

1. James, 1773–1836, English philosopher, historian, and economist, born in Scotland.
2. his son John Stuart, 1806–73, English philosopher and economist.

mill.

⁴

abbreviation for

1. million.

mill

¹

/ mɪl /

noun

1. a US and Canadian monetary unit used in calculations, esp for property taxes, equal to one thousandth of a dollar

mill

²

/ mɪl /

noun

1. a building in which grain is crushed and ground to make flour
2. a factory, esp one which processes raw materials

   a steel mill

3. any of various processing or manufacturing machines, esp one that grinds, presses, or rolls
4. any of various small hand mills used for grinding pepper, salt, or coffee for domestic purposes See also coffee mill pepper mill
5. a hard roller for impressing a design, esp in a textile-printing machine or in a machine for printing banknotes
6. a system, institution, etc, that influences people or things in the manner of a factory

   going through the educational mill

7. an unpleasant experience; ordeal (esp in the phrases go or be put through the mill )
8. a fist fight
9. run of the mill
   ordinary or routine

verb

1. tr to grind, press, or pulverize in or as if in a mill
2. tr to process or produce in or with a mill
3. to cut or roll (metal) with or as if with a milling machine
4. tr to groove or flute the edge of (a coin)
5. intr; often foll by about or around to move about in a confused manner
6. rare.
   usually tr to beat (chocolate, etc)
7. archaic.
   to fight, esp with the fists

Mill

³

/ mɪl /

noun

1. MillJames17731836MScottishPHILOSOPHY: philosopherHISTORY: historianSOCIAL SCIENCE: economist James. 1773–1836, Scottish philosopher, historian, and economist. He expounded Bentham's utilitarian philosophy in Elements of Political Economy (1821) and Analysis of the Phenomena of the Human Mind (1829) and also wrote a History of British India (1817–18)
2. MillJohn Stuart18061873MEnglishPHILOSOPHY: philosopherSOCIAL SCIENCE: economist his son, John Stuart. 1806–73, English philosopher and economist. He modified Bentham's utilitarian philosophy in Utilitarianism (1861) and in his treatise On Liberty (1859) he defended the rights and freedom of the individual. Other works include A System of Logic (1843) and Principles of Political Economy (1848)

Derived Forms

• ˈmillable, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of mill¹

First recorded before 950; Middle English noun miln(e), mille(n) “building for grinding grain,” Old English myl(e)n “(water) mill,” from Late Latin molīna, noun use of feminine of molīnus “of a mill,” equivalent to Latin mol(a) “mill” + -īnus -ine ¹

Origin of mill²

An Americanism dating back to 1780–90; short for Latin millēsimus “thousandth”; mil ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of mill¹

C18: short for Latin mīllēsimum a thousandth (part)

Origin of mill²

Old English mylen from Late Latin molīna a mill, from Latin mola mill, millstone, from molere to grind

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. through the mill, Informal. undergoing or having undergone severe difficulties, trials, etc., especially with an effect on one's health, personality, or character:

   He's really been through the mill since his wife's death.

More idioms and phrases containing mill

see grist for the mill ; mills of the gods grind slowly ; run of the mill ; through the mill ; tilt at windmills .

Example Sentences

Penske was on the board of the short-lived Ontario Motor Speedway in the 1970s, then built the California Speedway on the site of the Kaiser Steel mill in 1994.

From Los Angeles Times

Once mined, uranium is milled to produce what is called calcined yellowcake, and then enriched, either at facilities in Canada or overseas, to create fuel for nuclear reactors.

From BBC

The organisations at the mill were given six months to find a new home in March, which saw many of them open sites at a new location in Cirencester.

From BBC

When Americans previously sought divorces, those who could afford it traveled to what became known as "divorce mill" states like South Dakota, Indiana and Nevada to take advantage of their shorter residency requirements.

From Salon

I still remember when his business was a small warehouse space, a tiny upstairs office and a single mill to process blue corn into cornmeal.

From Los Angeles Times