Definition of mantis Mantis

/mæˈntɪs/ - [mantis] - man•tis

We found 5 definitions of mantis from 5 different sources.

What does mantis mean?

WordNet

Noun Plural: mantises
mantis - predacious long-bodied large-eyed insect of warm regions; rests with forelimbs raised as in prayer
		mantid
		dictyopterous insect cockroaches and mantids
		genus mantis type genus of the Mantidae: mantises

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Wiktionary

mantis (Noun)
Any of various large insects of the order Mantodea that catch insects or other small animals with their powerful forelegs.

Webster DictionaryWebster's Unabridged Dictionary 📘

mantis (n.)
Any one of numerous species of voracious orthopterous insects of the genus Mantis, and allied genera. They are remarkable for their slender grotesque forms, and for holding their stout anterior legs in a manner suggesting hands folded in prayer. The common American species is M. Carolina.

Wikipedia

Mantises (order "Mantodea") is an order of insects. It contains about 2,300 species. They occur in temerate and tropical habitats. Most are in are in the family Mantidae. For most of the past century, only this single family was recognized within the order, and the term "mantid" was therefore historically used for any member of the order; technically, however, the term only refers to this one family, meaning the species in the other eight recently-established families are not mantids, by definition (i.e., they are empusids, or hymenopodids, etc.), and the term "mantises" (or the more colloquial "praying mantises") should be used when referring to the entire order. Often mistakenly spelled preying mantis (an "eggcorn", since they are notoriously predatory), they are in fact named for the typical "prayer-like" stance. The word "mantis" derives from the Greek word "mantis" for prophet or fortune teller. In Europe, the name "praying mantis" refers to only a single species, "Mantis religiosa". The closest relatives of mantises are the orders Isoptera (termites) and Blattodea (cockroaches), and these three groups together are sometimes ranked as an order rather than a superorder.

Mantises are notable for their hunting abilities. They are exclusively predatory, and their diet usually consists of living insects, including flies and aphids; larger species have been known to prey on small lizards, frogs, birds, snakes, and even rodents. Most mantises are ambush predators, waiting for p