hexagonal

adjective

hex·​ag·​o·​nal hek-ˈsa-gə-nᵊl 

1

: having six angles and six sides

2

: having a hexagon as section or base

3

: relating to or being a crystal system characterized by three equal lateral axes intersecting at angles of 60 degrees and a vertical axis of variable length at right angles

hexagonally

hek-ˈsa-gə-nᵊl-ē 

adverb

Examples of hexagonal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Starship’s heat shield is composed of approximately 18,000 hexagonal tiles made of silica ceramic. — Sven Bilén, The Conversation, 29 Sep. 2026

The same mathematical framework applies to 2D materials like hexagonal boron nitride and molybdenum trioxide, which host hybrid light-matter excitations called hyperbolic phonon polaritons. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 28 Sep. 2026

Starship is outfitted with about 20,000 hexagonal tiles, forming a heat shield, to prevent the vehicle from melting, but reentry is still a precarious process. — Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 28 Sep. 2026

When viewed from above, the shape of that first layer can resemble the hexagonal honeycomb arrangement or the simple square grid. — Jack Murtagh, Scientific American, 17 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1571, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hexagonal

• diagonal
• octagonal
• tetragonal

Kids Definition

hexagonal

adjective

hex·​ag·​o·​nal hek-ˈsag-ən-ᵊl 

1

: having six angles and six sides

2

: having a hexagon as a section or base

a hexagonal prism