7 PHRASE If you say that you do not believe for a minute or for one minute that something is true, you are emphasizing that you do not believe that it is true. [EMPHASIS ] □ I don't believe for one minute she would have been scared.
8 PHRASE A last-minute action is one that is done at the latest time possible. □ She was doing some last-minute revision for her exams. □ He will probably wait until the last minute.
9 PHRASE You use the expression the next minute or expressions such as ' one minute he was there , the next he was gone' to emphasize that something happens suddenly. [EMPHASIS ] □ The next minute my father came in. □ Jobs are there one minute, gone the next.
10 PHRASE If you say that something happens the minute something else happens, you are emphasizing that it happens immediately after the other thing. [EMPHASIS ] □ The minute you do this, you'll lose control.
11 PHRASE If you say that something must be done this minute , you are emphasizing that it must be done immediately. [EMPHASIS ] □ Anna, stop that. Sit down this minute.
➋ mi|nute /ma I njuː t, [AM ] -nuː t-/ (minutest ) Minute does not have a comparative form. The superlative form minutest is used to emphasize how small something is, rather than in comparisons. ADJ If you say that something is minute , you mean that it is very small. □ Only a minute amount is needed. □ The party was planned in the minutest detail.
mi|nute|ly /ma I njuː tli, [AM ] -nuː t-/
1 ADV [ADV with v] You use minutely to indicate that something is done in great detail. □ The metal is then minutely examined to ensure there are no cracks.
2 ADV [usu ADV adj/-ed] You use minutely to indicate that the size or extent of something is very small. □ The benefit of an x-ray far outweighs the minutely increased risk of cancer.
mi|nu|tiae /ma I njuː ʃiiː, [AM ] m I nuː ʃ-/ N‑PLURAL The minutiae of something such as someone's job or life are the very small details of it. [FORMAL ] □ [+ of ] Much of his early work is concerned with the minutiae of rural life.
mira|cle /m I rək ə l/ (miracles )
1 N‑COUNT If you say that a good event is a miracle , you mean that it is very surprising and unexpected. □ It is a miracle no one was killed.
2 ADJ [ADJ n] A miracle drug or product does something that was thought almost impossible. [JOURNALISM ] □ …a miracle drug that is said to be a cure for Aids and cancer.
3 N‑COUNT A miracle is a wonderful and surprising event that is believed to be caused by God. □ …Jesus's ability to perform miracles.
mi ra|cle wo rk|er (miracle workers ) N‑COUNT If you describe someone as a miracle worker , you mean that they have achieved or are able to achieve success in something that other people have found very difficult. [APPROVAL ] □ At work he was regarded as a miracle worker, the man who took risks and could not lose.
mi|racu|lous /m I ræ kjʊləs/
1 ADJ If you describe a good event as miraculous , you mean that it is very surprising and unexpected. □ The horse made a miraculous recovery to finish a close third. □ …a miraculous escape. ● mi|racu|lous|ly ADV [ADV with v, oft ADV adj] □ Miraculously, the guards escaped death or serious injury.
2 ADJ If someone describes a wonderful event as miraculous , they believe that the event was caused by God. □ …miraculous healing. □ …miraculous powers.
mi|rage /m I rɑːʒ/ (mirages )
1 N‑COUNT A mirage is something which you see when it is extremely hot, for example in the desert, and which appears to be quite near but is actually a long way away or does not really exist. □ [+ of ] It hovered before his eyes like the mirage of an oasis.
2 N‑COUNT [usu sing] If you describe something as a mirage , you mean that it is not real or true, although it may seem to be. □ The girl was a mirage, cast up by his troubled mind.
mire /ma I ə r /
1 N‑SING You can refer to an unpleasant or difficult situation as a mire of some kind. [LITERARY ] □ [+ of ] …a mire of poverty and ignorance.
2 N‑UNCOUNT Mire is dirt or mud. [LITERARY ] □ …the muck and mire of sewers and farmyards.
mir|ror ◆◇◇ /m I rə r / (mirrors , mirroring , mirrored )
1 N‑COUNT A mirror is a flat piece of glass which reflects light, so that when you look at it you can see yourself reflected in it. □ He absent-mindedly looked at himself in the mirror. ● mir|rored ADJ □ …a mirrored ceiling.
2 VERB If something mirrors something else, it has similar features to it, and therefore seems like a copy or representation of it. □ [V n] The book inevitably mirrors my own interests and experiences.
3 VERB If you see something reflected in water, you can say that the water mirrors it. [LITERARY ] □ [V n] …the sudden glitter where a newly-flooded field mirrors the sky. COLLOCATIONS mirror NOUN 1
noun + mirror : bathroom, hand, shaving, vanity; driving, side
adjective + mirror : full-length, two-way SYNONYMS mirror VERB 2
copy: Children can be seen to copy the behaviour of others whom they admire or identify with.
reflect: Concern at the economic situation was reflected in the government's budget.
show: These figures show an increase of over one million in unemployment.