mano
mano Lexical Profile
mano Game Scores & Validity
• noun
American A close friend, companion, or brother (used colloquially as an informal term of address).
"Hey, mano, it's been far too long since we last caught up."
North American A smooth, hand-held stone used for grinding grain, seeds, or other materials against a larger base stone known as a metate.
"The archaeological team uncovered a basalt mano and metate near the remains of the ancient hearth."
Word Nuance & Usage
The borrowed Spanish phrase 'mano a mano' is frequently misunderstood by English speakers as meaning 'man-to-man', but it literally translates to 'hand-to-hand', describing a direct, one-on-one confrontation.
• Rhymes for mano
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed from Spanish 'mano' (hand), derived from Latin 'manus'. When used to mean 'friend' or 'brother' in colloquial English, it is a shortened form of the Spanish word 'hermano' (brother).
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.