mental

See also: mentál

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛn.təl/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛntəl

Etymology 1

Borrowing from Middle French mental, from Late Latin mentālis, from mēns (“mind, disposition; heart, soul”) +‎ -ālis (“-al”, adjectival suffix).

Adjective

mental (comparative more mental, superlative most mental)

1. (relational) Of or relating to the mind or specifically the total emotional and intellectual response of an individual to external reality.
   1. Of or relating to intellectual as contrasted with emotional activity.

      mental acuity

   2. Of, relating to, or being intellectual as contrasted with overt physical activity.
      • 2013 July 19, Ian Sample, “Irregular bedtimes may affect children's brains”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 34:

        Irregular bedtimes may disrupt healthy brain development in young children, according to a study of intelligence and sleeping habits.  ¶ Going to bed at a different time each night affected girls more than boys, but both fared worse on mental tasks than children who had a set bedtime, researchers found.

   3. Occurring or experienced in the mind.
      • 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, “The Unexpected”, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, OCLC 24962326, page 240:

        I don't mean all of your friends—only a small proportion—which, however, connects your circle with that deadly, idle, brainless bunch—the insolent chatterers at the opera, […], the neurotic victims of mental cirrhosis, the jewelled animals whose moral code is the code of the barnyard—!

      Synonym: inner

   4. Relating to the mind, its activity, or its products as an object of study.

      mental science

      Synonym: ideological

   5. Relating to spirit or idea as opposed to matter.

      the distinction between physical things and mental ideas

2. Of, relating to, or affected by a psychiatric disorder.

   a mental patient

   1. (relational) Intended for the care or treatment of persons affected by psychiatric disorders.

      mental hospitals

   2. (colloquial, Britain, dated in the US, comparable) Mentally disordered; insane, mad, crazy.

      He is the most mental freshman I've seen yet.

      He went mental on us.

3. (colloquial, Britain, comparable) Enjoyable or fun, especially in a frenetic way.

   That was a mental party last night.

4. Of or relating to telepathic or mind-reading powers.

   mental telepathy

Derived terms

• amental
• bimental
• extramental
• go mental
• inframental
• intermental
• intramental
• mental aberration
• mental age
• mental asylum
• mental block
• mental breakdown
• mental case
• mental disease
• mental disorder
• mentalese
• mental gymnast
• mental gymnastics
• mental health
• mental home
• mental hospital
• mental hygiene
• mental illness
• mental institution
• mentalism
• mentalist
• mentality
• mentalize, mentalise
• mentally
• mental masturbation
• mental mediumship
• mental midget
• mental patient
• mental reservation
• mental retardation
• neuromental
• nonmental
• physico-mental
• physiomental
• psychomental
• supramental

 

Translations

relating to the mind

• Arabic: عَقْلِيّ‎ (ar) (ʿaqliyy)
• Asturian: mental
• Bulgarian: умствен (bg) (umstven), мисловен (bg) (misloven)
• Catalan: mental (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 心理的 (zh) (xīnlǐ de), 精神的 (zh) (jīngshén de)

• Czech: duševní (cs)
• Dutch: geestelijk (nl), mentaal (nl)
• Esperanto: mensa (eo), psika, psiĥa
• Finnish: henkinen (fi), mentaalinen (fi), psyykkinen (fi), mieli-
• French: mental (fr)
• Galician: mental (gl)
• Georgian: გონებრივი (gonebrivi), მენტალური (menṭaluri)
• German: geistig (de), mental (de), psychisch (de), seelisch (de)
• Greek: διανοητικός (el) m (dianoïtikós), πνευματικός (el) m (pnevmatikós), νοητικός (el) m (noïtikós)
• Haitian Creole: mantal
• Hungarian: mentális (hu), lelki (hu), értelmi (hu), szellemi (hu), elmebeli (hu), elme-

• Indonesian: mental (id)
• Italian: mentale (it)
• Japanese: 心の (こころの, kokoro no), 精神的 (ja) (せいしんてき, seishinteki)
• Kazakh: психикалық (psïxïkalıq)
• Korean: 정신의 (jeongsinui)
• Occitan: mental (oc)
• Polish: psychiczny (pl), umysłowy (pl), mentalny (pl)
• Portuguese: mental (pt)
• Romanian: mintal (ro), mental (ro) m or n
• Russian: у́мственный (ru) (úmstvennyj)
• Sanskrit: मानस (sa) (mānasa)
• Spanish: mental (es)
• Swedish: själslig (sv), psykisk (sv)
• Tagalog: isipnin
• Telugu: మానసికమైన (mānasikamaina)
• Ukrainian: розумо́вий (rozumóvyj), ми́слений (mýslenyj)
• Volapük: tikälik (vo)

relating to a crazy person

• Esperanto: freneza (eo)
• Finnish: hullu (fi)
• Greek: τρελός (el) m (trelós)

• Hungarian: elmebeteg (hu), elvetemült (hu)
• Italian: pazzo (it)
• Ukrainian: психі́чний (psyxíčnyj)

Etymology 2

c. 1727, from Latin mentum (“the chin”) +‎ -al.

Adjective

mental (not comparable)

1. (anatomy, relational) Of or relating to the chin or median part of the lower jaw, genial.

   Synonyms: genial, genian

   the mental nerve, the mental region

2. (biology, relational) Of or relating to the chinlike or liplike structure.

Derived terms

• basilomental
• cardosubmental
• cervicomental
• corneomental
• frontomental
• gulamental
• hyomental
• inframental
• labiomental
• mental artery
• mental foramen
• mental nerve
• mental protuberance
• nasomental
• occipitomental
• palmomental
• pollicomental
• postmental
• premental
• sternomental
• submental
• thyromental
• verticomental

 

Translations

relating to the chin

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 頦的 (zh), 颏的 (zh) (kē de, (Taiwan) hái de)

• Esperanto: mentona

• Greek: πωγωνικός m (pogonikós), γενειακός m (geneiakós)
• Italian: mentale (it), mentoniero, genieno
• Volapük: cünik

Noun

mental (plural mentals)

1. (zootomy) A plate or scale covering the mentum or chin of a fish or reptile.

References

• “mental”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.
• “mental”, in Merriam–Webster Online Dictionary.

Further reading

• mental in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• mental in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• Lament., Mantle, lament, manlet, mantel, mantle

---

Asturian

Etymology

From Late Latin mentālis from Latin mēns; equivalent to mente +‎ -al.

Adjective

mental (epicene, plural mentales)

1. mental

Related terms

• mente

---

Catalan

Etymology

From Late Latin mentālis, from Latin mēns; equivalent to ment +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

• (Balearic, Central) IPA^(key): /mənˈtal/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /menˈtal/

Adjective

mental (masculine and feminine plural mentals)

1. mental

Derived terms

• mentalitat
• mentalment

Related terms

• ment

Further reading

• “mental” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “mental” in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana.
• “mental” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “mental” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

---

Cebuano

Etymology

Borrowed from English mental hospital.

Noun

mental

1. A hospital facility designed to treat persons with serious mental disorders, as opposed to disorders of the body; a mental hospital.

Verb

mental

1. To send or commit to a mental hospital.

---

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin mentālis (“of the mind, mental”), from Latin mēns.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɑ̃.tal/

• audio

  (file)

Adjective

mental (feminine singular mentale, masculine plural mentaux, feminine plural mentales)

1. mental (relating to the mind)

Derived terms

• carte mentale
• maladie mentale
• mentalement

 

Noun

mental m (uncountable)

1. mind

   Elle a un mental d'acier.

Further reading

• “mental” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Anagrams

• lament, mêlant

---

Galician

Etymology

From Late Latin mentālis, from Latin mēns; equivalent to mente +‎ -al.

Adjective

mental m or f (plural mentais)

1. mental

Derived terms

• mentalmente

Related terms

• mente

---

German

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin mentālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [mɛnˈtaːl]

• Audio (Berlin)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aːl

Adjective

mental (not comparable)

1. mental

Declension

Declension of mental

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter	all genders
predicative		er ist mental	sie ist mental	es ist mental	sie sind mental
strong declension (without article)	nominative	mentaler	mentale	mentales	mentale
	genitive	mentalen	mentaler	mentalen	mentaler
	dative	mentalem	mentaler	mentalem	mentalen
	accusative	mentalen	mentale	mentales	mentale
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der mentale	die mentale	das mentale	die mentalen
	genitive	des mentalen	der mentalen	des mentalen	der mentalen
	dative	dem mentalen	der mentalen	dem mentalen	den mentalen
	accusative	den mentalen	die mentale	das mentale	die mentalen
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein mentaler	eine mentale	ein mentales	(keine) mentalen
	genitive	eines mentalen	einer mentalen	eines mentalen	(keiner) mentalen
	dative	einem mentalen	einer mentalen	einem mentalen	(keinen) mentalen
	accusative	einen mentalen	eine mentale	ein mentales	(keine) mentalen

---

Indonesian

Etymology 1

From Dutch mentaal, from Middle French mental, from Late Latin mentālis (“of the mind, mental”), from Latin mēns (“the mind”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈmɛntal]
• Hyphenation: mèn‧tal

Adjective

mental

1. mental: of or relating to the mind or an intellectual process.

Noun

mental

1. mind.

   Synonyms: batin, watak

Related terms

• mentalitas

 

Etymology 2

From Betawi mental. Doublet of pental.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [mənˈtal]
• Hyphenation: men‧tal

Verb

mêntal

1. to bounce off

   Synonyms: terpelanting, terpental

2. to backfire

Etymology 3

From Sundanese mental.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [mənˈtal]
• Hyphenation: men‧tal

Adjective

mêntal

1. useless.

Further reading

• “mental” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia (KBBI) Daring, Jakarta: Badan Pengembangan dan Pembinaan Bahasa, Kementerian Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Republik Indonesia, 2016.

---

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin mentalis, from mens.

Adjective

mental (neuter singular mentalt, definite singular and plural mentale)

1. mental

References

• “mental” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

---

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin mentalis, from mens.

Adjective

mental (neuter singular mentalt, definite singular and plural mentale)

1. mental

References

• “mental” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

---

Portuguese

Etymology

From Late Latin mentālis, from Latin mēns; equivalent to mente +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /mẽ.ˈtaɫ/
• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /mẽ.ˈtaw/
• Hyphenation: men‧tal

Adjective

mental m or f (plural mentais, comparable)

1. mental

Derived terms

• mentalmente

Related terms

• mente

---

Romanian

Adjective

mental m or n (feminine singular mentală, masculine plural mentali, feminine and neuter plural mentale)

1. Alternative form of mintal

Declension

Declension of mental

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative/ accusative	indefinite	mental		mentală	mentali	mentale
	definite	mentalul		mentala	mentalii	mentalele
genitive/ dative	indefinite	mental		mentale	mentali	mentale
	definite	mentalului		mentalei	mentalilor	mentalelor

---

Spanish

Etymology

From Late Latin mentālis, from Latin mēns; equivalent to mente +‎ -al.

Adjective

mental (plural mentales)

1. mental

Derived terms

• anorexia mental
• mentalmente
• retrasado mental
• salud mental

 

Related terms

• mente
• mentalidad

---

Swedish

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin mentalis, from Latin mens.

Adjective

mental

1. mental, pertaining to the mind

Declension

Inflection of mental
Indefinite	Positive	Comparative	Superlative2
Common singular	mental	—	—
Neuter singular	mentalt	—	—
Plural	mentala	—	—
Definite	Positive	Comparative	Superlative
Masculine singular1	mentale	—	—
All	mentala	—	—
1) Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine. 2) The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative.

Related terms

• mentalpatient
• mentalsjuk
• mentalsjukhus

Anagrams

• mantel