manta

[ man-tuh; Spanish mahn-tah ]

/ ˈmæn tə; Spanish ˈmɑn tɑ /

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noun, plural man·tas

[man-tuhz; Spanish mahn-tahs]. /ˈmæn təz; Spanish ˈmɑn tɑs/.

(in Spain and Spanish America) a cloak or wrap.

a type of blanket or cloth used on a horse or mule.

Military. a movable shelter formerly used to protect besiegers, as when attacking a fortress.

Also called man·ta ray

[man-tuh-rey], /ˈmæn tə ˌreɪ/, dev·il ray

[dev-uhl rey]: /ˈdɛv əl ˌreɪ/: devilfish. Ichthyology. any of several tropical rays of the small family Mobulidae, especially of the genus Manta, measuring from 2 to 24 feet (0.6 to 7.3 meters) across, including the pectoral fins.

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Origin of manta

First recorded in 1690–1700; from Spanish, from Provençal: literally, “blanket”; see mantle

Words nearby manta

manstealing, mansuetude, Mansur, Mansûra, Mansur, al-, manta, Manta Bay, man-tailored, mantapa, Mantaro, manteau

Other definitions for manta (2 of 2)

Manta

[ mahn-tah, -tuh ]

/ ˈmɑn tɑ, -tə /

noun

a seaport in W Ecuador, on Manta Bay.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use manta in a sentence

Thirty million years before manta rays began gracefully gliding through ocean waters, a shark with fantastically elongated fins gave such underwater flight a go, researchers report in the March 19 Science.
An ancient shark’s weird fins helped it glide like a manta ray|Carolyn Gramling|March 18, 2021|Science News
Halfway through the game, I was fighting an enormous manta ray sort of thing while on my way to Hell.
Bayonetta Is Nintendo’s Graphic, Ass-Kicking Barbie|Alec Kubas-Meyer|October 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
For everyone else, the recently unveiled Manta Underwater Room in Zanzibar sounds like a dream come true.
The World’s Craziest Underwater Adventures|Nina Strochlic|May 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When both sides have been heard, the old men put their heads together under a cloak or manta, and agree upon their judgment.
Spanish Life in Town and Country|L. Higgin and Eugne E. Street

Then he pointed to the beautifully worked manta, “Did she squander wealth of hers on that?”
The Treasure Trail|Marah Ellis Ryan
Miss Dolores had consented to wear a manta de Manila or soft shawl wound gracefully around her, and in her hair a red clavel.
The Four Corners Abroad|Amy Ella Blanchard
It is not likely, however, that the manta devours anything larger than the pearl-oyster itself.
A Guide to the Study of Fishes, Volume 1 (of 2)|David Starr Jordan
He disguised himself as an antelope, by means of a cloak of cotton cloth (manta) painted to resemble the colouring of the animal.
Unknown Mexico, Volume 1 (of 2)|Carl Lumholtz

British Dictionary definitions for manta

manta

/ (ˈmæntə, Spanish ˈmanta) /

noun

Also called: manta ray, devilfish, devil ray any large ray (fish) of the family Mobulidae, having very wide winglike pectoral fins and feeding on plankton

a rough cotton cloth made in Spain and Spanish America

a piece of this used as a blanket or shawl

another word for mantelet (def. 2)

Word Origin for manta

Spanish: cloak, from Vulgar Latin; see mantle. The manta ray is so called because it is caught in a trap resembling a blanket

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

manta

Origin of manta

Words nearby manta

Other definitions for manta (2 of 2)

Words related to manta

How to use manta in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for manta

Word Origin for manta