mining

The word “mining” means the industry or process of extracting minerals, ores, or other resources from the earth. In plain terms, digging valuable materials out of the ground, or, in tech, generating cryptocurrency through computing power.

“Mining” is pronounced MEYE-nihng (/ˈmaɪnɪŋ/ in IPA).

Here is “mining” used in a sentence: “Coal mining once employed thousands of people in the region.”

“Mining” is a noun.

“Mining” is a fairly common word in modern English.

“Mining” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: the industry or process of extracting minerals, ores, or other resources from the earth.

The two broad methods are surface mining and underground mining. Surface mining includes open-pit, strip, and quarry operations, where material near the top is removed. Underground mining reaches deeper deposits through tunnels and shafts. Other forms include placer mining for riverbed minerals and in-situ methods that dissolve ore in place.

Quarrying is really a type of surface mining, but the terms are often distinguished by what is extracted. Quarrying usually refers to digging out building materials such as stone, slate, sand, and gravel from open pits. "Mining" more often describes extracting metal ores, coal, and minerals, including from deep underground.

Mining supplies the raw materials modern life depends on — metals for construction and electronics, coal and minerals for energy, and the lithium and copper behind batteries and wiring. Almost every manufactured product traces back to something mined. It is economically vital, though it also carries significant environmental and safety challenges.