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$$\log_x y = z$$

$x$ is the base.

$z$ is the exponent or power.

What's $y$ called?

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Possible duplicate of What is the $x$ in $\log_b x$ called? – Michael Homer 1 hour ago

I would just call it the argument, it makes sense of thinking of $\log_x$ as an operator, which is applied to an argument. So I would say that $y$ is the argument for the operator $\log_x$ when looking at the expression $\log_x(y)$.

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I think "argument" is probably the best word, but could be very confusing - for instance, in the complex numbers, "the imaginary part of a logarithm is the argument of the argument." – Milo Brandt 4 hours ago
    
yeah, you're right, especially because in some settings it might be natural to wonder what the complex argument of a logarithm is. Although in reality I don't think an actual name is needed for the number for which the log is being calculated. – Jorge Fernández Hidalgo 4 hours ago
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Although if argument is understood as an "input" to a function, it shouldn't be strange to have an argument within an argument if one has any familiarity with composition. – rnrstopstraffic 3 hours ago

In the days when people used logithm tables, the integer part was the characteristic, and the decimal was the mantissa.

So $\log 20 = 1.30103$, makes 1 the characteristic (the bit after E...)and 0.30103 the mantissa (which the log tables tell you).

In $b^n = x$ or $\operatorname{lg}_b x = n$, b is the base, and n is the exponent, x is the argument of the function.

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As I learned it, $y$ in your equation is the "power."

$z$ is very sharply the "exponent" (or "logarithm"), not the power. However, I also learned that few people make this sharp of a distinction.

"The fifth power of two" is equal to $32$. Is thirty-two an exponent? Of course not.

Is it a power? Well, I just said so in the question, didn't I?

Which power is it? The fifth power of two, of course. $5$ isn't the power. It's which power (of what base) is being referred to.

$2$ is the base. $5$ is the exponent. $32$ is the power.

You can retain these words regardless of whether the equation you reference is a logarithm or exponentiation.

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