Hexagon

Podcast 1 · Introduction

Hexagon

A documentary-style narration: origin, meaning, and feel.

Part of speech

noun

Pronunciation

HEK-suh-gun  /ˈhɛksəɡ(ə)n/

Definition

A polygon with six sides and six angles. A regular hexagon has six equal sides and six equal interior angles of 120 degrees each. Hexagons are one of only three regular polygons that can tile a plane without gaps or overlaps.

Plain meaning

A hexagon is a six-sided flat shape. Regular hexagons have equal sides and angles. They are famously found in nature in honeycomb cells and snowflake structures, and are one of only three regular shapes that can tile a flat surface perfectly — along with equilateral triangles and squares.

Register

Technical and neutral. Hexagon is standard mathematical, scientific, and everyday vocabulary. It is also colloquially used as a nickname for the French Ministry of Defence (the Hexagone — France itself, whose roughly hexagonal shape gives it the name).