mantle

C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary

US /ˈmæntəl/ UK /ˈmant(ə)l/ See IPA manual

Homophones

mantel /ˈmæn.təl/

Minimal pairs

Sounds like mental /ɛ/ vs /æ/

Meanings

1

noun
a loose sleeveless cloak; or a role or responsibility passed on

She took up the mantle of leadership after her mentor retired.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a loose sleeveless cloak;... cloak cape shawl wrap covering robe

Word family

Derived forms mantledmantling

Related forms mantelmantilladismantle

Etymology

From Old English mentel and Old French mantel ('cloak'), both from Latin mantellum ('cloak, covering'). The figurative sense of a 'role or responsibility passed on' is from the imagery of donning a predecessor's cloak.

mantel Old French mantellum Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# mantle

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈmæntəl/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈmant(ə)l/

## Meanings
1. a loose sleeveless cloak; or a role or responsibility passed on

## Examples
- She took up the mantle of leadership after her mentor retired.

## Synonyms
- cloak
- cape
- shawl
- wrap
- covering
- robe

## Derived Forms
- mantled
- mantling

## Related Forms
- mantel
- mantilla
- dismantle

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: mantel
- Root: mantellum

## Etymology
From Old English mentel and Old French mantel ('cloak'), both from Latin mantellum ('cloak, covering'). The figurative sense of a 'role or responsibility passed on' is from the imagery of donning a predecessor's cloak.

## AI Etymology
Mantle comes from Old English mentel and Old French mantel ('cloak'), both from Latin mantellum ('cloak, covering'). The figurative sense of a 'role or responsibility passed on' is from the imagery of donning a predecessor's cloak. The etymological trail includes Old French mantel, Latin mantellum. The same word family includes mantled, mantling, mantel, mantilla, dismantle. Its current noun use means "a loose sleeveless cloak; or a role or responsibility passed on".

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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