mine disposal
- noun
- /maɪn dɪsˈpoʊzəl/
- Specialized
- They specialized in mine disposal to protect communities from buried landmines left behind after the war.
Examples
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After the conflict ended, the military began mine disposal efforts to clear the fields of explosive devices.
-
The team conducted a thorough mine disposal operation to ensure the area was safe for civilians.
-
I would have a small but capable army of two at my disposal.
Fiction book (1997) -
I have at my disposal both a nuclear arsenal and a full battalion of Earth's finest fighting forces.
Fiction book (1997) -
"As you might imagine, I have all sorts of recourse at my disposal for insubordinate employees." "I can imagine."
Fiction book (1997) -
But instead of absorbing the bullet, I concentrated with every erg of power at my disposal on Thibodeaux's gun hand.
Fiction book (1997)
Synonyms
Removing danger from something, for example making a bomb harmless
How Thorough
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'the process of removing or neutralizing explosive mines' is directly and compositionally derived from 'mine' (an explosive device) + 'disposal' (the process of removing/eliminating). This transparent noun–noun combination follows normal English compounding and is cross-linguistically straightforward, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Mine disposal comes from the clear, literal image of someone dealing with a dangerous mine, and the disposal part is about getting rid of it or making it safe. So the phrase means 'removing or making safe explosive mines'.