Mineworker

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A laborer employed in extracting minerals, coal, or other valuable substances from beneath the earth's surface
2. A person who works in the extraction of resources such as coal or minerals from underground locations for commercial purposes
3. An individual engaged in the labor of extracting valuable materials like metals and coal from mines

Etymology: "Mineworker" is a plain compound: "mine" joined to "worker," with nothing hidden in its making. The first element, "mine," traces back through Old French "mine" to a Gaulish or Celtic-linked root meaning ore, and it originally referred to the underground pit or excavation itself before coming to describe the people who worked in them. "Worker" is an older English word, formed from "work" with the agent suffix "-er," so a worker is simply one who does work. Put together, the word names someone whose daily labor happens inside the ground, digging out metals such as tin, iron, and copper, and coal. The meaning follows directly from its parts, and the compound is transparent to any English speaker.

Synonyms: miner, coal miner, quarry worker, excavator, pitman