noun
miner
MY-ner/ˈmaɪnər/
A person who extracts coal, ore, or other minerals from the earth.
The miner uses a powerful drill to break through rock.
Etymology
The verb miner supplies the digging activity, and the agent ending identifies the person doing it. The word covered both digging for metals or minerals and digging military tunnels; the selected sense concerns extraction.
In context
coal miner in the north of England during the war so while all his peers were going out to fight he had to spend most of the day deep deep underground ripping out coal
More examples
- Coal miners wear protective equipment during every shift.
- She works as a miner at an open-pit copper mine.
- The miners ride an elevator deep underground.
Forms
Similar words
- coal miner
- Specifically extracts coal rather than other minerals or ores.
- quarry worker
- Extracts stone or similar materials from an open excavation.