mentality

Everyday

1. The usual way a person or group thinks and feels about things; their attitude: «a winning mentality». tree →
2. (formal) A person's mind or thinking ability. tree →

In the lessons

In sport and school, coaches talk about «a winning mentality», «a growth mentality» (believing you can get better with effort), or «a team mentality». It can also be negative: «a mob mentality» means people in a crowd doing things they would not do alone. Phrases: «a winning mentality», «herd mentality», «us-versus-them mentality».

Examples

• Our coach says we need a winning mentality. tree →
• A growth mentality means believing you can learn hard things. tree →
• Mob mentality made the crowd start pushing. tree →
• Grandma has a «waste not, want not» mentality. tree →
• Her positive mentality helped her finish the race. tree →
• The team changed its mentality after the half-time talk. tree →
• Copying everyone else is called a herd mentality. tree →
• An «us versus them» mentality can lead to bullying. tree →

Note

Countable: one mentality, two mentalities. Not the same as «mental» (about the mind; also slang «crazy»). Related: mindset (very similar), attitude. Not a maths word.