Sextal

Part of speech: adjective, noun

Definitions

1. An obsolete measure of liquid volume equal to about a pint, based on one sixth of a gallon
2. A small historical unit for measuring liquids, roughly a pint, once used in European trade and pharmacy
3. Refers to an old container-based measure of fluid, about a pint in capacity, now no longer in common use

Etymology: The Roman "sextarius" was a liquid measure equal to a sixth of a "congius," which is where the name comes from: Latin "sextus" means "sixth." A sextarius held roughly half a litre, about a modern pint, so the word literally names a sixth part of a larger vessel. Medieval Latin shortened the form to "sextale," and the word reached English through French-speaking clerks and merchants. In English it kept its sense of a fixed volume of wine, ale, or oil, and "sextary" was a related spelling for the same measure. Both forms belong to the vocabulary of old trade and commerce, when measures were set by custom and local authority rather than by a single national standard.