Sextans

American  

[sek-stuhnz] / ˈsɛk stənz /

noun

genitive

Sextantis

1. Astronomy. the Sextant, an equatorial constellation between Hydra and Leo.

2. (lowercase) a bronze coin of ancient Rome, the sixth part of an as, issued during the period of the Republic.

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Sextans British  

/ ˈsɛkstənz /

noun

1. a faint constellation lying on the celestial equator close to Leo and Hydra

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Etymology

Origin of Sextans

< Latin sextāns; sextant

Example Sentences

The map covers a region of sky about 2.5 times the size of the full Moon, located in the constellation Sextans.

From Science Daily • Feb. 3, 2026

In the Sextans constellation 4,500 light-years away, a dead, magnetic star rotates 592 times in a second, emanating electromagnetic beams like an oscillating lighthouse out into the universe.

From Salon • Aug. 30, 2023

The little asterism Sextans, the Sextant, lies in the region between Regulus and Alphard.

From A Field Book of the Stars by Olcott, William Tyler

The zodiacal constellations of Gemini, Cancer, and Leo, together with their neighbors Auriga, the Lynx, Hydra, Sextans, and Coma Berenices, will furnish an abundance of occupation for our second night at the telescope.

From Pleasures of the telescope An Illustrated Guide for Amateur Astronomers and a Popular Description of the Chief Wonders of the Heavens for General Readers by Serviss, Garrett Putman

We may just glance at two double stars in the small constellation of Sextans, situated under Leo.

From Pleasures of the telescope An Illustrated Guide for Amateur Astronomers and a Popular Description of the Chief Wonders of the Heavens for General Readers by Serviss, Garrett Putman