manta

UK: English: /ˈmæntə/, Spanish: /ˈmanta/

US: 'manta': (man′tə; Sp. män′tä); 'Manta': (män′tä, -tə)

Inflections of 'manta' (n): npl: mantas

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

man•ta  (man′tə; Sp. män′tä), n., pl. -tas (-təz; Sp. -täs). 

1. Clothing (in Spain and Spanish America) a cloak or wrap.
2. the type of blanket or cloth used on a horse or mule.
3. Military a movable shelter formerly used to protect besiegers, as when attacking a fortress.
4. Fish [Ichthyol.] Also called man′ta ray′, devil ray, devilfish. any of several tropical rays of the small family Mobulidae, esp. of the genus Manta, measuring from 2 to 24 ft. (0.6 to 7.3 m) across, including the pectoral fins. See illus. in preceding column.

• Provencal: blanket. See mantle
• Spanish
• 1690–1700

Man•ta  (män′tä, -tə), n. 

1. Place Names a seaport in W Ecuador, on Manta Bay. 64,569.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

manta / ˈmæntə ˈmanta/ noun

1. Also called: manta ray, devilfish, devil ray any large ray (fish) of the family Mobulidae, having very wide winglike pectoral fins and feeding on plankton
2. a rough cotton cloth made in Spain and Spanish America
3. a piece of this used as a blanket or shawl
4. another word for mantelet2

Etymology: Spanish: cloak, from Vulgar Latin; see mantle. The manta ray is so called because it is caught in a trap resembling a blanket