The phrase "two to the third power" or "two cubed" has a base of 2, an exponent of 3, and means that 2 is used as a factor 3 times. When math is typed on one line rather than written by hand, 2³ is sometimes written as 2^3 where the caret seperates the base from the exponent so the expression translates as "2 to the 3rd power."
