Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

mense

/mɛns/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.53 in modern English

Syllables: mense
IPA: /mɛns/

7

Scrabble Score

5

Letters

1

Syllables

4

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Property, owndom; possessions.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Decency; propriety; civility.

British usage; Countable; Uncountable

noun

A large amount.

British usage; Countable; Uncountable

verb

To adorn, bring honour to; grace.

Example Sentences

"... But never a soul had the mense to come near them,[…]"
"Little mense to the cheeks to bite aff the nose[…]"
"For she had baked a crumpie cake And butter scones, for mense's sake, To entertain her lodger."
"Be seen with men of mense, but turn aside From swicks and sweeps, the silly and the low […]"
"... ye'll hae the sense and the mense to keep a calm sough,[…]"
"There is not a mense of snow in "smoky Leeds,""

Etymology

From earlier mensk, from Middle English menske (“courtesy, honour”), from Old English mennisċu (“the human condition, humanity”) and/or Old Norse menska (“humanity”). More at mennish, mensch.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: menske, menska

Usage

Inflected Forms

menses (plural) menses (present, singular) mensing (participle, present) mensed (participle, past) mensed (past)

Derived Forms

menseful menseless

Questions

How do you pronounce mense?: The recorded pronunciation is /mɛns/.
What does mense mean?: Property, owndom; possessions.
Where does mense come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce mense

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