hex

Pluralhexes

Formshexes, hexing, hexed

1. 1
   nouncountable

   A magic spell, especially a curse or evil spell; also found in compounds such as hex sign.

   She swore her jealous neighbor had put a hex on her vegetable garden.

   Fans joke that a hex has kept the team from winning a championship for decades.

   UsageUsually put a hex on someone or something.

   Similarcurse, jinx, spell

2. 2
   base sixteennouncolloquialuncountableabbreviationclipping

   Short for hexadecimal: the base-sixteen number system, written with the digits 0–9 and the letters A–F.

   The error message gives the faulty address in hex.

   To read the file, convert the values from decimal to hex.

   UsageUsually in hex: an address shown in hex. Also before other nouns, as in hex value and hex dump.

   Note

   It is uncountable here, like decimal: a value is written in hex, not in a hex. Programmers favor it because each hex digit stands for four bits, so two digits spell out exactly one byte.

3. 3
   game boardnouncountable

   One of the six-sided spaces that make up some game boards.

   On this map, a single hex represents about ten miles of terrain.

   Infantry units move two hexes per turn, but only one through forest.

4. 4
   curse someoneverbtransitive

   To cast an evil spell on someone or something; to bewitch.

   Local legend holds that a spurned witch hexed the mill, and it burned down a year later.

   Fans joked that the rival coach had paid a witch to hex their quarterback.

   Similarcurse, jinx, bewitch

   Note

   The verb came first, recorded about 1830 and taken from Pennsylvania German hexe, "to practice witchcraft"; the noun followed in the 1850s. German Hexe, "witch", heads the family, and English hag is a distant relative, the same old word arriving by another road through Old English hægtesse. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

   • The verb is first recorded about 1830, borrowed from Pennsylvania German hexe, meaning 'to practice witchcraft'; the noun follows in the 1850s. en.wiktionary.org
   • German Hexe means 'witch' and belongs to the same etymological family. en.wiktionary.org
   • English hag is a doublet of hex, inherited through Old English hægtesse. en.wiktionary.org
5. 5
   adjective

   Shaped like a hexagon, with six sides: said especially of hardware such as nuts, bolts, and the keys that turn them.

   Each leg attaches to the frame with two hex bolts.

   The seat clamp has a hex socket instead of a quick-release lever.

   Similarhexagonal

   Note

   A clipping of hexagon that lives almost entirely in front of hardware nouns: hex nut, hex bolt, hex key, hex socket. In a hex key the six sides belong to the key's cross-section, which fits a matching six-sided recess. The spelling is shared with the verb of witchcraft, which came from Pennsylvania German and is an unrelated word.

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