1. (Abbr. mi. or mi) A unit of length equal to 5,280 feet or 1,760 yards (1,609 meters), used in the United States and other English-speaking countries. Also called land mile, statute mile.
2. A nautical mile.
3. An air mile.
4. Sports. A race that is one mile long.
5. A relatively great distance: had to walk for miles in the airport.

[Middle English, from Old English mīl, from Latin mīlia (passuum), a thousand (double paces), a Roman mile, pl. of mīlle, thousand.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.