six

[ siks ]
See synonyms for six on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a cardinal number, five plus one.

  2. a symbol for this number, as 6 or VI.

  1. a set of this many persons or things.

  2. a playing card, die face, or half of a domino face with six pips.

  3. Cricket. a hit in which the ball crosses the boundary line of the field without a bounce, counting six runs for the batsman.: Compare boundary (def. 4).

  4. an automobile powered by a six-cylinder engine.

  5. a six-cylinder engine.

  6. Slang.

    • the area directly behind a person; back: Check your six—there's a hottie approaching.

    • the area directly behind a person in motion; tail: The pilot had an enemy plane on his six.

adjective
  1. amounting to six in number.

Idioms about six

  1. at sixes and sevens,

    • in disorder or confusion.

    • in disagreement or dispute.

  2. get / have someone’s six, Slang. back1 (def. 54).

  1. watch one’s six, Slang. back1 (def. 62).

Origin of six

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English six, sex, Old English siex, syx, seox, sex; cognate with Dutch zes, Low German ses, German sechs, Old Norse sex, Gothic saihs, Latin sex, Greek héx Sanskrit ṣaṭ-

Words Nearby six

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use six in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for six (1 of 2)

six

/ (sɪks) /


noun
  1. the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one: See also number (def. 1)

  2. a numeral, 6, VI, etc, representing this number

  1. something representing, represented by, or consisting of six units, such as a playing card with six symbols on it

  2. Also called: six o'clock six hours after noon or midnight

  3. Also called: sixer cricket

    • a stroke in which the ball crosses the boundary without bouncing

    • the six runs scored for such a stroke

  4. a division of a Brownie Guide or Cub Scout pack

  5. at sixes and sevens

    • in disagreement

    • in a state of confusion

  6. knock someone for six informal to upset or overwhelm someone completely; stun

  7. six of one and half a dozen of the other or six and two threes a situation in which the alternatives are considered equivalent

determiner
    • amounting to six: six nations

    • (as pronoun): set the table for six

Origin of six

1
Old English siex; related to Old Norse sex, Gothic saihs, Old High German sehs, Latin sex, Greek hex, Sanskrit sastha

Other words from six

  • Related prefixes: hexa-, sex-

British Dictionary definitions for Six (2 of 2)

Six

/ (French sis) /


noun
  1. Les Six (le) a group of six young composers in France, who from about 1916 formed a temporary association as a result of interest in neoclassicism and in the music of Satie and the poetry of Cocteau. Its members were Darius Milhaud, Arthur Honegger, Francis Poulenc, Georges Auric, Louis Durey, and Germaine Tailleferre

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with six

six

In addition to the idioms beginning with six

  • six feet under
  • six of one, half a dozen of the other

also see:

  • at sixes and sevens
  • deep six
  • Joe six-pack

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.