mana
ma·na/ˈmɑ.nə/noun
mana is spelled M-A-N-A: 4 letters and 2 syllables (ma·na). It appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 19,825th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “mana vs manna” about 10 times a month (Bing, United States). As a noun, mana means “Power, prestige; specifically, a form of supernatural energy in Polynesian religion that inheres in things or people” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of mana is manas.
How many letters and syllables are in mana?
| Letters | 4: M-A-N-A |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: ma·na |
| In writing | 1.9 times per million words; the 19,825th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is mana?
Mana appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 19,825th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce mana?
- UK /ˈmɑː.nə/
- UK /ˈmæ-/
- US /ˈmɑ.nə/
Mana has 2 syllables, split ma·na in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-mana.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Pohewatanga-mana_(NZ_English).wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with mana
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with mana?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as mana from its last stressed vowel (/ɑnə/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: naam.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of mana
- manas plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does mana mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Power, prestige; specifically, a form of supernatural energy in Polynesian religion that inheres in things or people.
But in popular estimation their essential virtue derived from the personal mana of the sovereign.
- 2
Magical energy.
- 3
Alternative form of mina (“ancient unit of weight or currency”).
- 4
Alternative spelling of manna.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Mana in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense Translations:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Spanish | maná |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does mana come from?
Borrowed from Māori mana, ultimately from Proto-Polynesian *mana, from Proto-Oceanic *mana. The use of "mana" for "magical energy" in role-playing games originated from Larry Niven, when he wrote the short story, "Not Long Before the End", in 1969. It was later popularised by his The Magic Goes Away setting.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).