8 results for: mantissa

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

man·tis·sa

Audio Help [man-tis-uh] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	Mathematics. the decimal part of a common logarithm. Compare characteristic (def. 3a).

2.	Obsolete. an addition of little or no importance, as to a literary work.

[Origin: 1860–65; < L, var. 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)

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
mantissa

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

man·tis·sa Audio Help (mān-tĭs'ə) Pronunciation Key
n. The decimal part of a logarithm. In the logarithm 2.95424, the mantissa is 0.95424.

[Latin, makeweight, perhaps of Etruscan origin.]

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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
mantissa

decimal part of a logarithm, 1641, from L. mantisa "a worthless addition, makeweight," probably from a Gaulish word introduced into L. via Etruscan (cf. O.Ir. meit, Welsh maint "size").

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

mantissa
noun
the positive fractional part of the representation of a logarithm; in the expression log 643 = 2.808 the mantissa is .808

The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

mantissa Audio Help (mān-tĭs'ə) Pronunciation Key
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.

Free On-line Dictionary of Computing - Cite This Source - Share This

mantissa
1. The part of a floating point number which, when multiplied by its radix raised to the power of its exponent, gives its value. The mantissa may include the number's sign or this may be considered to be a separate part.
2. The fractional part of a logarithm.
(1996-06-15)

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Mantissa

Man*tis*sa\, n. [L., an addition, makeweight; of Tuscan origin.] (Math.) The decimal part of a logarithm, as distinguished from the integral part, or characteristic.

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