| 释义 |
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2024sex•tant /ˈsɛkstənt/USA pronunciation n. [countable]- Astronomyan instrument used to figure out one's latitude and longitude at sea by measuring certain angles of the sun, moon, and stars.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024sex•tant (sek′stənt),USA pronunciation n. - Astronomyan astronomical instrument used to determine latitude and longitude at sea by measuring angular distances, esp. the altitudes of sun, moon, and stars.
- Astronomy(cap.) the constellation Sextans.
- Latin sextant- (stem of sextāns) sixth part of a unit. See sext, -ant
- 1590–1600
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers:: sextant /ˈsɛkstənt/ n - an optical instrument used in navigation and consisting of a telescope through which a sighting of a heavenly body is taken, with protractors for determining its angular distance above the horizon or from another heavenly body
- a sixth part of a circle having an arc which subtends an angle of 60°
Etymology: 17th Century: from Latin sextāns one sixth of a unit |