Exponents are a mathematical concept used to express large numbers in terms of powers. An exponent refers to how many times a number is multiplied by itself. For example, 6 multiplied by itself 4 times can be expressed as 6^4, where 4 is the exponent and 6 is the base. The exponent of a number indicates the total time to use that number in a multiplication. Exponents are also called powers or indices. The symbol used for representing the exponent is ^, which is called a carrot. Exponents make it easier to write and use many multiplications. Exponents are important to write the values of numbers in simplified form.