Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

sextant

/ˈsɛk.stənt/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.28 in modern English

Syllables: sex-tant
IPA: /ˈsɛk.stənt/

14

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A navigational device for deriving angular distances between objects so as to determine latitude and longitude.

noun

One sixth of a circle or disc; a sector with an angle of 60°.

noun

One of six groups of adjacent teeth, excluding the wisdom teeth.

noun

A radial cell division of segments in three series, a sixth part of the original.

name

The constellation Sextans.

Example Sentences

"[…] I can do more with a Quadrant, Sextant or Octant, of 1 foot Radius, furniſhed with Teleſcopical Sights and Screws, then ^([sic]) can poſſibly be done with any other Inſtrument, furniſhed only with Common Sights, though 10, 20, 30, nay threeſcore foot Radius; […]"
"I took our position every morning with my crude sextant; but the results were always most unsatisfactory."
"Moskowitz and Devereux have designed a hyperaccurate sextant for interstellar navigation based upon the design of the sextant used by the Apollo astronauts."

Etymology

From Latin sextāns.

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: sextāns

Inflected Forms

sextants (plural)

Derived Forms

sextantal

Frequently Paired Words

octant quadrant

Rhymes With

extant

Questions

How do you pronounce sextant?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈsɛk.stənt/.
What does sextant mean?: A navigational device for deriving angular distances between objects so as to determine latitude and longitude.
Where does sextant come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce sextant

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