LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · neutersecond declension

mentum

mentum n (genitive mentī)
Classical[ˈmɛn.tũː]Ecclesiastical[ˈmɛn.tum]
Mille Verba core vocabulary

Meaning

  1. literallyneuterthe chin; the chin with the hair that grows on it; the beard
    nosco crinis incanaque menta regis Romani primam qui legibus urbem fundabit, Curibus paruis et paupere terra missus in imperium magnum.29 BCE – 19 BCE, Vergilius, Aeneis 6.809
  2. neuterthe projecting part of a cornice casting off the rain, the coping
    Reliqua spatia, quod latiores sint metopae quam triglyphi, pura relinquantur aut numina scalpantur, ad ipsumque mentum coronae incidatur linea quae scotia dicitur.c. 15 BCE, Vitruvius, De architectura 4.3.6

Latīnē defined in Latin in our graded readers

pars faciēī īnfrā ōs.
mentum -ī n — in Mille Verba, Corpus Hūmānum
pars īnfima vultūs, sub ōre
mentum -ī (n) — in Metamorphoses I, ch. 23

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativementummenta
genitivementīmentōrum
dativementōmentīs
accusativementummenta
ablativementōmentīs
vocativementummenta

mentum, i, n. root men-, min-, to project; cf.: minae, minari, etc.,
I. the chin of persons and animals; also, the chin with the hair that grows on it, the beard.
I. Lit.: Herculis mentum paulo attritius, Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 43, § 94: attingere, Plin. 11, 45, 103, § 251: incana, Verg. A. 6, 809: caprarum, Plin. 8, 50, 76, § 204.—
II. Transf., in archit., the projecting part of a cornice, which casts off the rain, the coping, Vitr. 4, 3, 6.
mentum dicebant, quod nos commentum, Paul. ex Fest. p. 124 Müll.

Origins

From Proto-Italic *məntom, from Proto-Indo-European *mn̥tós (“protruding”), from *men- (“to project”). Cognate with Proto-Germanic *munþaz.

Descendants
  • Italianmentofrom Vulgar Latin *mentō, *mentōnem
  • Frenchmentonfrom Vulgar Latin *mentō, *mentōnem
  • Englishmentonfrom Vulgar Latin *mentō, *mentōnem
  • Spanishmentónfrom Vulgar Latin *mentō, *mentōnem
  • Catalanmentófrom Vulgar Latin *mentō, *mentōnem
  • Occitanmentonfrom Vulgar Latin *mentō, *mentōnem
  • Englishmentum
  • Portuguesemento
  • Sicilianmentufrom Vulgar Latin *mentō, *mentōnem
  • Ligurianmantonfrom Vulgar Latin *mentō, *mentōnem

Quick answers

What does mentum mean in Latin?
mentum, a noun, means “the chin; the chin with the hair that grows on it; the beard”.
What is the genitive of mentum?
The genitive singular is mentī. mentum is neuter, second declension.
How do you pronounce mentum?
In classical Latin, [ˈmɛn.tũː]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [ˈmɛn.tum].