mantissa
[ man-tis-uh ]
/ mænˈtɪs ə /
noun
Obsolete.
an addition of little or no importance, as to a literary work.
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
mantilla,
mantinea,
mantis,
mantis shrimp,
mantispid,
mantissa,
mantle,
mantle plume,
mantle radiotherapy,
mantle rock,
mantlepiece
Example sentences from the Web for mantissa
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 magnitude
the mantissa of 2.4771 is .4771 Compare characteristic (def. 2a)
Word Origin for mantissa
C17: from Latin: something added, of Etruscan origin
Scientific definitions for mantissa
mantissa
[ măn-tĭs′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.