land mine

noun

: a mine usually placed just below the surface of the ground and designed to be exploded usually by the weight of vehicles or troops passing over it

—often used figuratively

Every aspect of this scheme is a potential land mine.

—Henry Kissinger

a political land mine

Synonyms of land mine

• hitch
• risk
• snag
• booby trap

Examples of land mine in a Sentence

parents of teenagers never know when they might set off an emotional land mine

Recent Examples on the Web

His Minderoo Foundation—named for the cattle ranch of his childhood—has since given about $28 million to Ukraine’s schools and agricultural projects, and to clearing land mines. — Vivienne Walt, Fortune, 23 Sep. 2026

In August 2015, land mine blasts maimed two South Korean soldiers and caused tensions between the two Koreas to flare. — ABC News, 21 Sep. 2026

More than any other sports league, the WNBA is fraught with land mines that are ready to explode whenever a Black woman — like, Alyssa Thomas — commits a hard foul on, say, the league’s most visible star, Caitlin Clark. — Candace Buckner, New York Times, 27 July 2026

The younger Modrić’s childhood home in the village of Jasenice was abandoned and remains so to this day, with signs warning visitors of land mines in the area. — Sanat Pai Raikar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1890, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for land mine

• affine
• airline
• align
• aline
• assign
• baseline
• beamline
• benign
• bloodline
• bovine
• brucine
• byline

Kids Definition

land mine

noun

: a mine placed just below the surface of the ground and designed to be exploded by the weight of the vehicles or troops passing over it