Powers and Exponents

Updated June 26, 2019 | Infoplease Staff

A power is the product of multiplying a number by itself.

Usually, a power is represented with a base number and an exponent. The base number tells what number is being multiplied. The exponent, a small number written above and to the right of the base number, tells how many times the base number is being multiplied.

For example, “6 to the 5th power” may be written as “6⁵.” Here, the base number is 6 and the exponent is 5. This means that 6 is being multiplied by itself 5 times: 6 x 6 x 6 x 6 x 6

6 x 6 x 6 x 6 x 6 = 7,776 or 6⁵ = 7,776