English

Proper noun

Sextans

1. (astronomy) A dim spring constellation of the northern sky, said to resemble a sextant. It lies south of the constellation of Leo.

Derived terms

• Sextantis

Translations

English

Noun

sextans

1. (historical, Roman antiquity) A Roman coin worth one sixth of an as.

Latin

Etymology

From sex ‎(“six”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈsek.stans/, [ˈsɛk.stãːs]

Noun

sextāns m ‎(genitive sextantis); third declension

1. a sixth part bronze coin
2. a sixth part of a piece of land
3. a sixth part measure of liquid
4. (Later Latin) a sextant (nautical instrument)

Inflection

Third declension i-stem.

Related terms

• sextānī
• sextārius

See also

• octāns
• quadrāns

Descendants

• Russian: секстан ‎(sekstan), секстант ‎(sekstant)

References

• sextans in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• sextans in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• Félix Gaffiot (1934), “sextans”, in Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Paris: Hachette.
• sextans in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• sextans in William Smith et al., editor (1890) A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin