Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

mantis

/ˈmæntɪs/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.11 in modern English

Syllables: man-tis
IPA: /ˈmæntɪs/

8

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Any of various large insects of the order Mantodea that catch insects or other small animals with their powerful forelegs.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

A green colour, like that of many mantises.

Uncountable

Example Sentences

"The scientists then allowed the males from one group of mantises to mate with females from the other."
"Don’t get me wrong: I love mantises so much it is pathetic. They have that quality, like some views of a beautiful city, where it feels that you are seeing them for the first time, every time. Each mantis looks so perfect, so whole and individual."

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *men- Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *méntis Proto-Hellenic *mə́tis Ancient Greek μάντις (mántis)bor. Latin mantisbor. English mantis From New Latin mantis, from Ancient Greek μάντις (mántis, “soothsayer”). Distant doublet of mind via Proto-Indo-European *méntis. Noncognate with mantissa.

Origin

Source language: Ancient Greek

Word Breakdown

Root: mantis, μάντις, *méntis

Usage

Inflected Forms

mantises (plural) mantes (plural) mantid (alternative)

Derived Forms

mantisfly mantislike

Phrases

Chinese mantis European mantis flower mantis mantis crab mantis shrimp praying mantis sea mantis Skinner's ground mantis

Synonyms

rear-horse mantid

Rhymes With

atlantis duplantis yantis

Questions

How do you pronounce mantis?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈmæntɪs/.
What does mantis mean?: Any of various large insects of the order Mantodea that catch insects or other small animals with their powerful forelegs.
Where does mantis come from?: It is traced to Ancient Greek.

How to pronounce mantis

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “mantis”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈmæntɪs/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “mantis”.
Repeat and practice — Say “mantis” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.