Meanings
plural taxicab numbers
- mathematicsThe nth taxicab number, typically denoted Ta(n) or Taxicab(n), is the smallest number that can be expressed as a sum of two positive algebraic cubes in n distinct ways.
Synonyms: Ramanujan-Hardy number
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe nth taxicab number, typically denoted Ta(n) or Taxicab(n), is the smallest number that can be expressed as a sum of two positive algebraic cubes in n distinct ways.
Origin
From an anecdote of the mathematician G. H. Hardy, who went to visit Srinivasa Ramanujan in a taxicab number 1729. Hardy suggested that the number seemed unremarkable, whereupon Ramanujan identified it as having this mathematical property.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
taxicab number. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/taxicab%20number
“taxicab number.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/taxicab%20number. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “taxicab number,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/taxicab%20number.
Source: taxicab number on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.