minenwerfer

M3I1N1E1N1W4E1R1F4E1R1
UK/ˈmiːnənˌvɛːfə/UK/ˈmiːnənˌwəːfə/

noun

A type of trench mortar used by German forces especially during the First World War, or the shells fired by such a mortar.

OriginGerman Minenwerfer →
First used 20th c.Scrabble 19
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounminenwerfer (plural minenwerfers or minenwerfer)

plural minenwerfers · alternative minnenwerfer

  1. historicalgovernmentA type of trench mortar used by German forces especially during the First World War, or the shells fired by such a mortar.First known use 20th c.

    Something landed outside that shook the earth. ‘Four hundred twenty or minnenwerfer,’ Gavuzzi said.

    1929, Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms, Folio Society, published 2008, page 59

Origin

  1. GermanMinenwerfer
  2. Englishminenwerfer

From German Minenwerfer, from Mine + Werfer (“mortar”).

More words from German

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

minenwerfer. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/minenwerfer

MLA

“minenwerfer.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/minenwerfer. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “minenwerfer,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/minenwerfer.

Source: minenwerfer on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.