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Minute: used in spoken English to mean a very short time
“Empty the soup into a saucepan and simmer gently for ten minutes.”
I think “minute” is used as singular in this sense, but can I say “ten minutes”? The dictionary says “ten minutes” is the example of “minute” indicating a very short time.
Whether the time is short or not depends on how many minutes and what is being timed. But other than "one minute", some number of minutes is not singular.
"a minute" is used to describe an indefinite (and usually short) length of time. For example:
I'll be back in a minute.
Give me a minute to think about it.
The intention is that it is a short period of time, without being specific.
I'll only be in the store for a minute.
This one is not likely to be so short a period of time though...
That sentence is in the "More examples" section, not specifically under one definition or the other. "Ten minutes" refers to the exact unit of time, as you thought.
