minion

noun

ˈmin-yən How to pronounce minion (audio)
Definition of minionnext
as in favorite
a person or thing that is preferred over others most of the top appointments went to the new governor's personal minions and political cronies

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of minion While on a boat, the minions encounter a shark, referencing Jaws (1975), made extra obvious by a music cue channeling John Williams' memorable score. — Barry Levitt, Time, 3 July 2026 The minions become accidental movie stars, but they are fired from the industry after sound is introduced to films. — Parents, 1 July 2026 And minions have taken over Wendy’s frosty machines with a new banana flavor. — Samantha Masunaga, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026 The world premiere on Sunday – in the presence of Illumination boss Chris Meledandri and director Pierre Coffin, who is also the origin of the minions’ unintelligible chatter – kicks off one of the biggest Annecy Film Festival’s yet. — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 19 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for minion
Recent Examples of Synonyms for minion
  1. favorite
  2. darling
  3. pet
Noun
  • Schwarber and Harper will be the hometown favorites among the Philadelphia crowd; Schwarber is also the favorite to win the contest.
    — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 13 July 2026
  • Kylo's adoption fee was fully paid for in memory of Jim Ehrig, a fan favorite of Kylo's who passed away.
    — Michelle Richardson, CBS News, 13 July 2026
Definition of favorite
Noun
  • On their debut album, the Detroit musician skewers social-climbing scene darlings and tackles personal existential delusions over a frenetic blend of post-punk and electro-pop.
    — Cassidy Sollazzo, Pitchfork, 13 July 2026
  • Won its group, defeated tournament darling Cape Verde, ousted Egypt and then de-neutralized the Swiss in extra time.
    — Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 13 July 2026
Definition of darling
Noun
  • Both companies are betting that medicines modeled on human GLP-1 drugs can help regulate appetite in pets, and top-line results of their clinical trials are expected to be released later this year.
    — Elsa Ohlen,Carolin Roth, CNBC, 18 July 2026
  • Like Blair, Zhang often depicts pets within a cameo frame as a gesture of old-fashioned memorializing.
    — Felicia Feaster, USA Today, 17 July 2026
Definition of pet

Browse Nearby Words

mining
minion
minions
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Minion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/minion. Accessed 19 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 17
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All