mensa

¹

[men-suh]

noun

plural

mensas, mensae ,

genitive

Mensae .

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

2. (initial capital letter),  the Table, a southern constellation near Octans.

Mensa

²

[men-suh]

noun

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

Mensa

¹

/ ˈmɛnsə /

noun

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

Mensa

²

/ ˈmɛnsə /

noun

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

Other Word Forms

• Mensan noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of Mensa¹

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

Origin of Mensa²

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of Mensa¹

Latin, literally: the table

Example Sentences

"Henry's a genius. He's a member of Mensa. He taught himself to read aged 25 months."

From BBC

Voter turnout was 60.9%, said the head of Ghana's electoral commission, Jean Mensa.

From BBC

When Pastor, enraged, kills a parishioner, he convinces the trusting Mensa that God uses sinners for his will and wants Mensa to help Pastor get rid of the body in the California desert.

From New York Times

Mahnoor, who is a member of Mensa, will be focussed on gaining a place at Oxford University or Imperial College.

From BBC

"I knew nothing about Mensa before the test, no preparation," he said.

From BBC