Mensa

/ˈmɛnsə/

//ˈmɛnsə// name

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"mensa" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“Mensa” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #43,785. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#43,785
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Mensa International, an organization for people with very high IQs.

Corpus desk

Index EN-mensa · Mensa · English

Mensa · rank #43,785 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #43,785
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH mignon

Nearest frequency peer: mignon (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “Mensa”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “Mensa” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

Mensa vs mes
40% similar
Mensa vs MSA
20% similar
Mensa vs mess
40% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for Mensa
PropertyValue
HeadwordMensa
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/ˈmɛnsə/
Letters5
Frequency rank#43,785
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “Mensa”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).Mensalands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “mignon” (#43,786), “Medway” (#43,783), “Millicent” (#43,787). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “Mensa” is #43,785. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around Mensa (IPA /ˈmɛnsə/), aproper noun. Corpus frequency is #43,785 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Mensa International, an organization for people with very high IQs.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for Mensa, with forms such as "emnsa", "mennsa", and "menssa". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "mes", "MSA", "mess", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin mensa (“table”). The organization promotes itself as a "round-table" society in which differences in the backgrounds of its members are considered irrelevant. The correct English form is Mensa, spelled M-E-N-S-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    Mensa International, an organization for people with very high IQs.

Etymology

From Latin mensa (“table”). The organization promotes itself as a "round-table" society in which differences in the backgrounds of its members are considered irrelevant.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • emnsa
  • mennsa
  • menssa
  • mesna
  • mmensa
  • mnesa

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Mensa - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

emnsa2mennsa1menssa1mesna2mmensa1mnesa2
Edit distance from "Mensa"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Mensa"?
"Mensa" is spelled M-E-N-S-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmɛnsə/.
What does "Mensa" mean?
As a proper noun, "Mensa" means: Mensa International, an organization for people with very high IQs.
What words are commonly confused with "Mensa"?
"Mensa" is commonly confused with "mes", "MSA", "mess". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Mensa"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Mensa" is /ˈmɛnsə/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "Mensa"?
From Latin mensa (“table”). The organization promotes itself as a "round-table" society in which differences in the backgrounds of its members are considered irrelevant. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "Mensa", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Mbeki#43,778Mosby#43,795Malmö#43,772Nabil#43,801

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

milt6 variantsmosh6 variantsotaku6 variantsRecep6 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list