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mantissa
[ man-tis-uh ]
/ mænˈtɪs ə /
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noun
Obsolete. an addition of little or no importance, as to a literary work.
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Origin of mantissa
1860–65; <Latin, variant of mantisa addition, makeweight, said to be from Etruscan; logarithmic mantissa so called because it is additional to the characteristic or integral part (term introduced by H. Briggs)
Words nearby mantissa
mantid, mantilla, Mantinea, mantis, mantispid, mantissa, mantis shrimp, mantle, mantlepiece, mantle plume, mantle rock
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use mantissa in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for mantissa
mantissa
/ (mænˈtɪsə) /
noun
the fractional part of a common logarithm representing the digits of the associated number but not its magnitudethe mantissa of 2.4771 is .4771 Compare characteristic (def. 2a)
Word Origin for mantissa
C17: from Latin: something added, of Etruscan origin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Scientific definitions for mantissa
mantissa
[ măn-tÄs′ə ]
The part of a logarithm to the base ten that is to the right of the decimal point. For example, if 2.749 is a logarithm, .749 is the mantissa. Compare characteristic.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
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