sextant
/ˈsɛk.stənt/ noun, proper noun
Forms sextants
- noun (nautical) A navigational device for deriving angular distances between objects so as to determine latitude and longitude.
- noun (geometry) One sixth of a circle or disc; a sector with an angle of 60°.
- noun (dentistry) One of six groups of adjacent teeth, excluding the wisdom teeth.
- noun (botany) A radial cell division of segments in three series, a sixth part of the original.
- proper noun (astronomy) The constellation Sextans.
Etymology
From Latin sextāns.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The sixth part of a circle.
- noun An instrument for measuring angular distances between objects, --used esp. at sea, for ascertaining the latitude and longitude. It is constructed on the same optical principle as Hadley's quadrant, but usually of metal, with a nicer graduation, telescopic sight, and its arc the sixth, and sometimes the third, part of a circle. See Quadrant.
Etymology [L. sextans, -antis, the sixth part of an as, fr. sextus sixth, sex six. See Six.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “sextant”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details