Meningiomas are usually thought of as firm solid tumors and most standard references make no mention of cystic meningiomas. Although several cases of cystic meningioma have been reported in the literature and their neuroradiological features discussed, the rarity of this entity makes its preoperative diagnosis difficult. Recently, the authors encountered a case of cystic meningioma, which was thought as ependymal cyst or infarction, preoperatively. In this report the authors discussed its clinical, neuroradiological and pathological characteristics with brief reviews of the literature.