mince pie
3
3.1
- noun
- /mɪns paɪ/
- UK
:
pastel de carne
- Here, have a mince pie, Phyll.
- homemade mince pies
I also just love making kind of more festive things like mince pies, like spicy bits and pieces.
- I also just love making kind of more festive things like mince pies, like spicy bits and pieces.
Examples
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And she had whispered into the phone that she hadn't made her best mince pie that year, since Paxton wasn't there to enjoy it.
Fiction book (1990) -
The focus of the meal is the mince pie that was created from currants, raisins, and spices from the Middle East and served at special banquets and holidays.
Blog text (32) -
You still go for the mince pie?
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One too many mince pies.
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I've made you a nice mince pie.
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Just offering Alec a mince pie.
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I probably should be making my own mince pies, but don't have time.
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I also just love making kind of more festive things like mince pies, like spicy bits and pieces.
-
He bounded into the hospital, giving an astonished porter a mince pie and trotting towards the wards.
Fiction book (1995) -
Would you like a mince pie filled with sweet, spiced fruit for dessert?
Synonyms
696
1.0
A baked pastry with a sweet or savory filling
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a small pie filled with minced meat/mincemeat' is directly and compositionally derived from 'mince' (chopped meat) + 'pie' (a pastry with a filling), so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the referent. Note: historically 'mincemeat' is now often a sweet fruit mixture in British Christmas mince pies, but the noun composition remains transparent and signals a pie with a mince-type filling.
Etymology
Mince pie comes from old small pies where mince meant 'chopped' meat mixed with fruit and spices and eaten at Christmas. Over time cooks left out the meat and mince pies became the sweet small treats people eat at Christmas today.