mensa

[ men-suh ]

/ ˈmɛn sə /

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noun, plural men·sas, men·sae

[men-see] /ˈmɛn si/ for 1.

Also called altar slab, altar stone . the flat stone forming the top of the altar in a Roman Catholic church.

genitive Men·sae.(initial capital letter)Astronomy. the Table, a southern constellation near Octans.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of mensa

First recorded in 1685–95; from Latin mēnsa “table”

Words nearby mensa

menorrhoea, menoschesis, menostaxis, Menotti, men's, mensa, mensal, mensch, mense, menservants, menses

Other definitions for mensa (2 of 2)

Mensa

[ men-suh ]

/ ˈmɛn sə /

noun

an international fellowship organization for people with IQ's in the top 2 percent of the general population.

Origin of Mensa

From the Latin word mēnsa table, symbolizing the original conception of the society, “a round table where no one has precedence”

OTHER WORDS FROM Mensa

Mensan, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mensa in a sentence

Match.com and Mensa have joined up, making it easier than ever to find fellow geniuses to date.
Online Dating for Geniuses Only|Charlotte Lytton|June 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This track is so confusing and multi-layered, it would take a team of Mensa members with Ph.D.s in Ebonics to decode.
Miley Cyrus’s Craziest Lyrics From ‘Bangerz,’ Analyzed|Amy Zimmerman|October 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Curtis put up on his MySpace page a fake certificate proclaiming himself a member of Mensa, leaving Dutschke outraged.
Ricin Suspect J. Everett Dutschke Arrested|Winston Ross|April 27, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Sometimes the recess is rectangular instead of arched, and is then called by De Rossi sepolcro a mensa, or table tomb.
The Catacombs of Rome|William Henry Withrow

At the end opposite the entrance is a large sepolcro a mensa, in front of which is a dais elevated two steps.
The Catacombs of Rome|William Henry Withrow
Would not the discomfort of meals eaten with a companion who could swallow nothing justify a divorce a mensa?
Somehow Good|William de Morgan
Pone omnibus scitule appositis, ac mensa largiter instructa edere ceperunt, omniaque ingurgitauerunt.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 3 (of 7)|Geoffrey Chaucer
In the Tripartite (Stokes, p. 251), menister seems to mean the paten, and mias (quasi mensa) the altar-table.
Insula Sanctorum et Doctorum|John Healy

British Dictionary definitions for mensa (1 of 2)

Mensa¹

/ (ˈmɛnsə) /

noun Latin genitive Mensae (ˈmɛnsiː)

a faint constellation in the S hemisphere lying between Hydrus and Volans and containing part of the Large Magellanic Cloud

Word Origin for Mensa

Latin, literally: the table

British Dictionary definitions for mensa (2 of 2)

Mensa²

/ (ˈmɛnsə) /

noun

an international society, membership of which is restricted to people whose intelligence test scores exceed those expected of 98 per cent of the population

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