Also called statute mile. a unit of distance on land in English-speaking countries equal to 5,280 feet, or 1,760 yards (1.609 kilometers).
nautical mile.
international nautical mile.
any of various other units of distance or length at different periods and in different countries.Compare Roman mile.
a notable distance or margin: missed the target by a mile.Abbreviation: mi, mi.
Origin of mile
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English mīl, from Latin mīlle (passus); mīlle, mīlia (passuum) “a thousand (paces), thousands of paces”
Then she managed to struggle a mile through dark, rainy woods.
The 7-Year-Old Plane Crash Survivor’s Brutal Journey Through the Woods|James Higdon|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Each one seems a mile high, and the entire flight an insurmountable obstacle.
You’re Never ‘Cured’ of an Eating Disorder|Carrie Arnold|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So I went home—we only lived about a quarter mile away—and I got on my bicycle and rode back, and he was in the donut shop.
Joe Biden: ‘I’ll Kill Your Son’|Olivia Nuzzi|December 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The incident occurred just one mile from the Garner incident.
Before Eric Garner, There Was Michael Stewart: The Tragic Story of the Real-Life Radio Raheem|Marlow Stern|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At 11:00 a.m., a group of 40 young people, mostly teenagers, rallied at a subway station about a mile from the airport.
Mexican Protesters Look to Start a New Revolution|Jason McGahan|November 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He had a selection on a long box-scrub siding of the ridges, about half a mile back and up from the coach road.
On the Track|Henry Lawson
One mile from New Harmony, we were forced to alight from the carriage, as the horses would not draw us up a steep hill.
Travels Through North America, v. 1-2|Berhard Saxe-Weimar Eisenach
Fine links at the top of the hill, not half a mile from the farm.
Love Among the Chickens|P. G. Wodehouse
"A quarter of a mile further upstream there's an old wood-road," he went on, in answer to Fred's eager query.
Harper's Round Table, October 8, 1895|Various
“I thought so,” he exclaimed, when we had got about half a mile below the rapid.
Snow Shoes and Canoes|William H. G. Kingston
British Dictionary definitions for mile
mile
/ (maɪl) /
noun
Also called: statute milea unit of length used in the UK, the US, and certain other countries, equal to 1760 yards. 1 mile is equivalent to 1.609 34 kilometres
See nautical mile
See Swedish mile
any of various units of length used at different times and places, esp the Roman mile, equivalent to 1620 yards
(often plural)informala great distance; great dealhe missed by a mile
a race extending over a mile
adverb
miles(intensifier)he likes his new job miles better
Word Origin for mile
Old English mīl, from Latin mīlia (passuum) a thousand (paces)