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mien

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mien

  [meen]
Use mien in a Sentence
–noun
air, bearing, or demeanor, as showing character, feeling, etc.: a man of noble mien.
Origin:
1505–15; prob. aph. var. of obs. demean bearing, demean 2 ; spelled with -ie- to distinguish it from mean 2

Synonyms:
appearance, look; carriage.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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mien   (mēn)   
n.  

  1. Bearing or manner, especially as it reveals an inner state of mind: "He was a Vietnam veteran with a haunted mien" (James Traub).

  2. An appearance or aspect.


[Alteration (influenced by French mine, appearance) of Middle English demeine, demeanor, from Old French, from demener, to behave; see demean1.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Main Entry:  mien1
Part of Speech:  n
Definition:  demeanor, conduct
Etymology:  shortening and alteration of demean
Main Entry:  mien2
Part of Speech:  n
Definition:  appearance, bearing; manner
Etymology:  shortening and alteration of demean
Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon
Copyright © 2003-2009 Dictionary.com, LLC
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Word Origin & History

mien  (1)
"facial expression," 1513, shortening of M.E. demean "bearing, demeanor" (see demeanor); infl. by M.Fr. mine "appearance, facial expression," possibly of Celtic origin (cf. Bret. min "beak, muzzle, nose," Ir. men "mouth").

mien  (2)
"Chinese wheat flour noodles" (in lo mein, chow mein, etc.), 1934, from Chinese, lit. "wheat flour."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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