mince
Cut very small
Mince means to cut or chop into very small pieces: mince the garlic and add it to the pan.
Minced meat, or simply mince in British English, is finely ground meat.
To mince words is to speak evasively or with excessive delicacy—usually negated: Let me not mince words: you're fired.
To mince is also to walk with short, dainty, affected steps.
Step high and proud
- sashayWalk with showy confidence
- tiptoeWalk on foot-fronts
- daintyDelicately small and pretty
- affectedArtificially contrived behavior
prissy · delicate · prissily · walk · strut · affectedly · tripping · nimble
Make less firm
- downplayDiminish perceived importance
- sugarcoatMake something seem pleasanter
- understateExpress with restraint
- veilFabric that obscures
gloss · cushion · temper · hedge · moderate · qualify · tone down · hold back
Falsely grand or important
- theatricalExaggeratedly emotional for effect
- simperingSmiling affectedly, falsely coy
- daintyDelicately small and pretty
- effeminateMale seeming feminine
foppish · mannered · precious · prim · prissy · coy · finicky · fastidious
dice
Marked cubes for chance
julienne · hash · fragment · carve · fillet · butcher · cleave · grind · quarter · segment
prance
Step high and proud
affected · prissy · delicate · prissily · walk · strut · affectedly · tripping · nimble · coy
soften
Make less firm
- downplayDiminish perceived importance
- sugarcoatMake something seem pleasanter
- understateExpress with restraint
veil · gloss · cushion · temper · hedge · moderate · qualify · tone down · hold back · spare
pretentious
Falsely grand or important
- theatricalExaggeratedly emotional for effect
- simperingSmiling affectedly, falsely coy
- daintyDelicately small and pretty
effeminate · foppish · mannered · precious · prim · prissy · coy · finicky · fastidious · overdone
ground
Solid surface underfoot
tartare · sausage · kebab · meatloaf · bolognese · ragu · filling · stuffing · hash · shepherd's pie
- cooking termsbaste, baking, blanch, braise, roasting
- culinary artsflavor, aroma, seasoning, sauce, roasting
- Cooking Basicsknife skills, mise en place, seasoning, measuring, timing
- knife cutsjulienne, chiffonade, dice, chop, slice
- cookingbaking, chop, boiling, dice, saute
- meatbeef, pork, chicken, steak, bacon
mincespeak plainly
tell it like it is · reveal · call a spade a spade · pull no punches · not mince words
- wait a minuteRequest for pause
- last minuteJust before deadline
- just a minuteRequest for brief patience
- in a minuteVery soon, briefly delayed
- for a minuteFor a brief duration
- any minuteExtremely soon expected
minute, diminish, miniature, minuscule, mincing, minced, minces, mincer, mincemeat