Exponentiation

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˌɛk.spoʊˌnɛn.ʃiˈeɪ.ʃən/

Definitions

1. The act of calculating the result of a base number multiplied by itself for a set number of times determined by an exponent This mathematical procedure involves elevating a fundamental value to a given power through successive multiplications A concept in arithmetic where a number is increased to a specific power by repeatedly multiplying it by itself
2. The mathematical process of raising a base number to a specific power indicated by an exponent
3. An operation in mathematics where a quantity is multiplied by itself as many times as the exponent shows

Etymology: Exponentiation is built from "exponent" plus two pieces of ordinary English word-building. "Exponent" comes from Latin "exponere", "to set forth" or "to expose", and in mathematics an exponent is the small raised number that shows how many times a base is multiplied by itself. The middle "-i-" is a connecting vowel, and "-ation" is the common suffix that turns a verb into a noun naming a process, as in "multiplication" or "calculation". The word's exact route into English is less clear than its parts. The authoritative Oxford English Dictionary records it, but the precise ancestry is uncertain: it may have been formed directly from "exponent" with the usual suffixes, or it may have been shaped by analogy with "exponential", a term that was already used in mathematics. Either way, the coinage follows the pattern of many mathematical nouns that gained a formal -ation ending once the process they named became routine.