mind
/mʌɪnd
/noun
1The element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think, and to feel; the faculty of consciousness and thought: a lot of thoughts ran through my mind...
- My mind, your mind, and the minds of every other conscious being are particular, limited manifestations of this universal mind.
- For example, the agency instituting repression must be derived from the ego, the conscious part of the mind.
- We tend to suppose that our conscious mind is in control most of the time.
Synonyms
sanity, mental balance, mental faculties, senses, wits, reason, reasoning, judgement, rationality
informal marbles
2A person’s ability to think and reason; the intellect: his keen mind...
- The Virgo-Virgos have keen intelligence and fine minds.
- Bob has a keen mind and a wicked sense of humour so add it to your must-view list.
- An analytical mind and the ability to get on with people is essential.
2.1A person’s memory: the company’s name slips my mind...
- Memories raced through his mind, thoughts of the joy Isaac had brought to his life.
- Before leaving, take a second look to engrave in your mind and heart the memories of this tranquil place.
- The eve of St. Patrick's Day 2004 will not leave the minds, hearts and memories of so many people especially her family and her close school friends.
Synonyms
memory, recollection, powers of recall
2.2A particular way of thinking, influenced by a person’s profession or environment: he had a deep contempt for the bureaucratic mind...
- He reveals not only a wealth of detail about the individual fate of Gypsies, but also reminds us of the brutal methods and criminal minds of the Nazis.
- So he heads to foreign lands, to study the mysteries of the criminal mind, and ends up in a Bhutanese prison.
- All my time involved in this case he never struck me as having a criminal mind.
Synonyms
opinion, way of thinking, outlook, attitude, view, viewpoint, point of view, belief, judgement, thoughts, feeling, sentiment, persuasion
2.3A person identified with their intellectual faculties: he was one of the greatest minds of his time...
- On July 1, 2003, the faculty at the University of Waterloo will be joined by one of Canada's leading academics and brightest minds.
- These are a few of the big ideas being vigorously researched and heatedly discussed by some of the brightest minds in academe.
- I'll leave that to the great intellectual minds to figure out.
Synonyms
intellect, thinker, brain, scholar, academic, intellectual, sage
3A person’s attention: employees should keep their minds on the job...
- We have to turn our minds and attention to the serious challenge about what to do about social conditions.
- What concentrates the mind wonderfully is the knowledge that you must have it and you can't afford it.
- An atmosphere of frenzied but good-natured co-operation prevails; with so much to get through, our minds are concentrated wonderfully.
Synonyms
attention, thoughts, concentration, thinking, attentiveness
3.1A person’s will or determination to achieve something: anyone can slim if they set their mind to it...
- He set his mind on achieving black belt status in karate and he did just that in the months and years that were to follow.
- It's a tall order but Jansen believes his team-mates can achieve their goal if they put their minds to it.
- It seems Oxford students really can achieve great things when they put their minds to it.
verb [with object]
1 [often with negative] Be distressed, annoyed, or worried by: I don’t mind the rain...
- Not that he minded her being so worried, it was actually very sweet of her, but it was unhealthy to worry so much.
- As for the weather, you don't mind if it stays raining all day but we were putting the rain gear on and taking it off all the time.
- I don't mind when it rains but I hate that thin film drizzle that seems only to be in the air but manages to soak you in next to no time.
1.1Object to: what does that mean, if you don’t mind my asking? [with clause]: do you mind if I have a cigarette?...
- I wondered if he minded me reading them, and decided I didn't care.
- I do indeed care that he's pro-Europe, although I mind more about his position in BAT.
- If the people I am visiting really care about my family's health then they do not mind this one small favour.
Synonyms
care, object, be bothered/troubled/annoyed, be upset, be offended, take offence, be affronted, be resentful, disapprove, resent it, dislike it, look askance
informal give/care a damn, give/care a toss, give/care a hoot, give a monkey's, give/care a rap, give a tinker's curse/damn
vulgar slang give a shit
1.2 [with negative or in questions] (mind doing something) Be reluctant to do something: I don’t mind admitting I was worried...
- It takes a lot to rattle Ms Garrett, but she doesn't mind admitting she's worried.
- Don Brash wouldn't have minded paying the dry cleaning bill to get the mud out of his suit, because that particular assault just gave him public sympathy towards his message.
- Our dog never minds going for his boosters there.
1.3 (would not mind something) informal Used to express one’s strong enthusiasm for something: I wouldn’t mind some coaching from him!...
- I would not mind a fling in the wilderness with said co-worker.
- Despite a range of food experts claiming that the new product is nothing more than a gimmick, most said they would not mind a spoonful or two.
- I'm sure our people would not mind a few million dollars spent on tracking down and liquidating these outstanding professionals.
2Regard as important; feel concern about: never mind the opinion polls [no object]: why should she mind about a few snubs from people she disliked?...
- If anyone else said the kind of things he said, they would have been regarded as arrogant, but you didn't mind it from him.
- He hates the 30 pages of documentation he has to keep to abide by the state regulations, but he doesn't mind the manure injection itself.
- Peeled garlic is popular with restaurants and consumers too lazy to shuck the small cloves of garlic - and they don't seem to mind the canned flavor.
2.1Scottish Remember: I mind the time when he lost his false teeth...
- 'I mind the time,' said the first speaker, 'when she would have done the same, and made rare fun of it afterwards.'
- Do you mind the time you dyed your hair?"
3 [with clause, in imperative] Used to urge someone to remember or take care to do something: mind you look after the children...
- And mind you lock your door.
- Mind you look where she ended up!
- I am absolutely knackered, and I suppose I should write this; mind you it's quarter to ten!
Synonyms
be/make sure (that), see (that), take care that;
remember to, be/make sure to, don't forget to, take care to
3.1 [in imperative] Used to warn someone to avoid injury or an accident: mind your head on that cupboard! [no object]: chiefly British mind out—there’s a step missing...
- The tape warned me to mind my head, as during these times people had been smaller.
- Just mind out, there's an ants' nest there, just move over.
Synonyms
be careful of, watch out for, look out for, beware of, take care with, be on one's guard for, be cautious of, be wary of, be watchful of, keep one's eyes open for
take care, be careful, watch out, look out, beware, be on one's guard, be wary, be watchful, keep one's eyes open, be cautious
3.2 [no object, in imperative] informal Used to emphasize a command: be early to bed tonight, mind...
- You best be nice to her, mind, or you'll be having me to deal with!
3.3 [in imperative] Be careful about the quality or nature of: mind your manners!...
- I have no social plans for this weekend, I'm eating more simply, I got lots of sleep last night and so that just leaves minding my manners and everything should go swimmingly.
- Bringing a set of darts to an interview could be viewed as a warning to lairy journalists to mind their manners, but not with Meadows.
- Then at the restaurant one has to mind one's manners, no slurping, grunting, farting or burping.
3.4 [with object] North American & Irish Pay attention to; obey: you think about how much Cal does for you, and you mind her, you hear?...
- ‘When your mother returns,’ he said, ‘make sure that you mind her better’.
- You need to mind me because I love you and know what is best for you.
Synonyms
pay attention to, take heed of, heed, pay heed to, attend to, take note/notice of, be heedful of, note, mark, concentrate on, listen to, observe, have regard for, respect, be mindful of;
obey, follow, comply with, adhere to
archaic regard
4Take care of temporarily: we left our husbands to mind the children while we went out...
- Honestly, he's so kind and if you got held up on your way to pick up the kids he would take special care to mind them till you got there.
- One thing is recommended is to leave the husband at home to mind the children!
- In other words, the husband stays home to mind the kids while his wife earns the bacon.
Synonyms
look after, take care of, keep an eye on, attend to, care for, tend, watch, have/take charge of, guard, protect
5 [with infinitive] (be minded) Be inclined to do something: he was minded to reject the application...
- Harrogate planners at a subsequent meeting determined that they were minded to reject the plan anyway.
- He was entertaining, too, if he was so minded.
- I'm not particularly minded to watch whales myself, but I suppose it beats working for a living.
6 [no object, in imperative] (also mind you) Used to introduce a qualification to a previous statement: we’ve got some decorations up—not a lot, mind you...
- Not in a lot of detail, mind you, because it was just like every other year we spend here.
- Not that Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl is a one star movie, mind you.
- Not that all of us corgis get along like strawberries and cream, mind you.
Phrases
bear something in mind
be in (or of) two minds
be of one (or a different) mind
close (or shut) one's mind to (or against)
come (or spring) to mind
(I) don't mind if I do
give someone a piece of one's mind
great minds think alike
have a (or a good or half a) mind to do something
have someone/thing in mind
have a mind of one's own
in one's mind's eye
mind over matter
mind one's own business
mind one's Ps & Qs
mind the shop
never mind
not pay someone any mind
on someone's mind
open one's mind to
out of one's mind
put someone in mind of
put (or give or set) one's mind to
put someone/thing out of one's mind
to my mind
Origin
Old English gemynd 'memory, thought', of Germanic origin, from an Indo-European root meaning 'revolve in the mind, think', shared by Sanskrit manas and Latin mens 'mind'.
English mind shares its ancient root with Latin mens ‘mind’, from which demented (mid 17th century), mental (Late Middle English), and mention derive. The mind can do many wonderful things, including ‘boggling’. The phrase the mind boggles, meaning that someone becomes astonished or overwhelmed at the thought of something, is first recorded in the 1890s. Boggle itself is probably a dialect word related to bogle ‘a phantom or goblin’ and bogey ‘an evil or mischievous spirit’. Someone may have warned you to mind your Ps and Qs, ‘be careful to behave well and avoid giving offence’. The expression has been known since the 1770s, but its exact origins are uncertain. One obvious suggestion is that it comes from a child's early days of learning to read and write, when they might find it difficult to distinguish between the two tailed letters p and q. Another idea suggests that printers had to be very careful to avoid confusing the two letters when setting metal type. Mind how you go!, meaning ‘be careful, look after yourself’, has been common in Britain since the 1940s. It was popularized by the long-running BBC TV series Dixon of Dock Green (1955–76), in which it was a catchphrase of the avuncular PC George Dixon, along with evening all.