manilla

M3A1N1I1L1L1A1

noun

A penannular armlet, sometimes worn on the leg or neck or used as an ornament, mostly in bronze, copper or gold, which served as a form of money or barter coinage amongst certain West African peoples.

Similar
manilamanila papermanilla paper
OriginSpanish manilla ← Catalan manilla ← Latin monīle →
UncommonScrabble 9
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

manilla1

nounmanilla (plural manillas)

plural manillas · alternative manilio · alternative Manilla

  1. A penannular armlet, sometimes worn on the leg or neck or used as an ornament, mostly in bronze, copper or gold, which served as a form of money or barter coinage amongst certain West African peoples.

manilla2

adjectivemanilla (not comparable)
  1. alternativenot comparableAlternative spelling of manila (“made of or colored like manila paper”).
nounmanilla (countable and uncountable, plural manillas)

plural manillas

  1. alternativecountableuncountableAlternative spelling of manila.

Manilla3

proper noun
  1. archaicArchaic spelling of Manila.
  2. A census-designated place in Rush County, Indiana, United States.
  3. A minor city in Crawford County, Iowa, United States.
  4. A village in the former Mariposa Township, now Kawartha Lakes, Ontario, Canada; named after Manilla, Indiana.
  5. A small town north-west of Tamworth, New South Wales, Australia; the name is from the Gamilaraay language.
  6. A river in the same area of New South Wales, which joins the Namoi River.
nounManilla (plural Manillas)

plural Manillas

  1. alternativeAlternative form of manilla (“African armlet formerly used as currency”).

Synonyms & antonyms

nouna strong paper or thin cardboard with a smooth light brown finish made from e.g. Manila hemp

Similar
manilamanila papermanilla paper
Broader
paper
Also see
manilamanila paper

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*mḗh₁n̥s“moon, month”
  2. Proto-Germanic*mēnô“moon”
  3. Frankish*mānili“moon-shaped ornament”
  4. Proto-Indo-European*mony-“withers, crest, mane”
  5. Latinmonīle“a necklace, collar”
  6. Catalanmanilla“bracelet, armring”
  7. Spanishmanilla“bracelet”
  8. Englishmanilla

From Spanish manilla (“bracelet”), from Catalan manilla (“bracelet, armring”); partly from Latin monīle (“a necklace, collar”), from Proto-Indo-European *mony- (“withers, crest, mane”); and partly from Frankish *mānili (“moon-shaped ornament”), from *māno (“moon”), from Proto-Germanic *mēnô (“moon”), from Proto-Indo-European *mḗh₁n̥s (“moon, month”), related to Old High German mânili (“moon-shaped ornament”). More at mane, moon.

More words from Spanish, Catalan, Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with manilla

villamanilaAnguillagorillaGodzillaPriscillachinchillaflotillaSillascintillaScyllaDrusillamaxillacedillapapillaaxillahydrillacamarillabarillamantillaperillaancillascillagranadilla
All rhymes →

Anagrams

laminalAlnilam
Cite this entry
APA

manilla. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manilla

MLA

“manilla.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manilla. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “manilla,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manilla.

Source: manilla on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.