mantissa Definition
- 1the fractional part of a logarithm, which is the difference between the logarithm and the next lower whole number
- 2the decimal part of a logarithm expressed in scientific notation
Using mantissa: Examples
Take a moment to familiarize yourself with how "mantissa" can be used in various situations through the following examples!
Example
The mantissa of log 25.6 is 0.4082.
Example
The mantissa of log 3.14 x 10^5 is 0.4971.
Example
In scientific notation, the mantissa is the decimal part of the number.
mantissa Synonyms and Antonyms
Synonyms for mantissa
- remainder
- fractional part
- decimal part
Phrases with mantissa
floating-point mantissa
the part of a floating-point number that represents the significant digits
Example
The floating-point mantissa of 3.14159 is 0.14159.
fixed-point mantissa
the part of a fixed-point number that represents the significant digits
Example
The fixed-point mantissa of 3.14159 is 14159.
the mantissa of a floating-point number after it has been adjusted to have a leading digit of 1
Example
The normalized mantissa of 0.00123 is 1.23.
Origins of mantissa
from Latin 'mantissa', meaning 'a piece added on'
Summary: mantissa in Brief
The term 'mantissa' [man-tis-uh] refers to the fractional part of a logarithm, or the decimal part of a logarithm expressed in scientific notation. It is the difference between the logarithm and the next lower whole number, and is used to represent the significant digits of a number. Examples include 'The mantissa of log 25.6 is 0.4082.' and 'In scientific notation, the mantissa is the decimal part of the number.'
