A system of weights and measures originating in France, the use of which is required by law in many countries, and permitted in many others, including the United States; the system is also called by its French name, Le Système International de Unités (abbreviated SI). The principal unit of length is the meter (see Meter). From this are formed the are, the liter, the stere, the gram, etc. These units, and others derived from them, are divided decimally, and larger units are formed from multiples by 10, 100, 1,000, and 10,000. The successive multiplies are designated by the prefixes, deka- (formerly deca-), hecto-, kilo-, and myria- (seldom used); successive parts by deci-, centi-, and milli-. The prefixes mega- and micro- are used to denote a multiple by one million, and the millionth part, respectively; giga- and nano- denote multiples of one billion (1,000,000,000) and one billionth, respectively. The prefix for one trillion (1012) is tera, and for one trillionth (10-12) is pico; for one quintillion (1015) peta, and for (10-15) (one quintillionth) femto; for (10-18) atto. See the words formed with these prefixes in the Vocabulary. For metric tables, see p. 1682.
A decimal system of weights and measures, adopted first in France, but now in widespread use throughout the world, and universally in science. Its official name in English is International System of Units. The basic units of measurement are the meter for distance (39.37") and the gram for mass (15.432 grains). Derived units include the liter (1.0908 U.S. dry quarts or 1.0567 U.S. liquid quarts), the are (114.9 square yards), and the stere (35.315 cubic feet)..The metric system is slowly moving into the printing world. Although printers and type founders have used point for 300 years and are slow to change, photo typesetting and transfer-type companies have been converting their type sizes to metric measure. Even some newspapers now measure columns in centimeters instead of in inches or agate lines. The equivalents appear below. See also PICA POINT 1 point equals .35 mm 1 mm equals 2.85 points. 72 points (6 picas) is approximately 25.24 mm (or 2.52 cms).
Decimal measurements based on multiples and subdivisions of ten.
A system of weights and measures whose basic units are the gram for weight and the meter for length. See our Conversion Charts for more information
A system of measurements based on the decimal system, used in most countries and in almost all scientific applications.
(1) A measurement system based on the base-10 numeration system and used in most countries in the world. Units for linear measure (length, distance) include millimeter, centimeter, meter, kilometer; units for mass (weight) include gram and kilogram; units for capacity (amount of liquid or other pourable substance a container can hold) include milliliter and liter.
A system of units of weights and measures depending upon the meter. It is the standard in Continental Europe and in Latin America, and ought to be adopted throughout the entire world.
The measurement system used in most countries in the world; a system of measurement based on the decimal numeration system. Some measures include: linear (length, distance)-millimeter, centimeter, decimeter, meter, kilometer; mass (weight) -gram, kilogram; and capacity (an amount of liquid or other pourable substance) - milliliter.
a system of quantitative measurement based on the decimal system (10). The metric system can be used to quantify length, mass, and volume.
The metric system is a system of measurement for length, weight, volume, temperature, and others that is used throughout most of the world.
A system of measurement used throughout the world based on factors of 10. It includes measures of length, weight, and capacity.
A system of measurement started by the French in 1790. In this system, there is only one unit of measurement for each quantity, larger and smaller units are created by adding prefixes to the basic unit, and the basic units are rational and related to each other.
A decimal system used by most countries other than the U.S., for solid, liquid and distance measurements; see "basis weight" and "grammage".
Decimal system of weights and measures based on the meter as a unit length and the kilogram as a unit mass.
The International System of Units (known by the abbreviation SI) used for measurement by the entire world with the only significant exception being the United States of America. For real estate purposes, the USA uses the Imperial System of feet and inches.
A system of measures with basic units of: meter for length, liter for capacity, gram for mass, and degrees Celsius for temperature.
An international system of scientific measurements based on multiples of 10, somewhat analagous to our system of currency; for example, 10 pennies = 1 dime; 100 pennies = 10 dimes = 1 dollar. The base unit for length is the meter and for mass, the kilogram.
a scientific system of measurement based on powers of ten.
A system of units developed in France at the time of the French Revolution (1789-1799), the Metric System was designed with several features in mind. First, that there would be only one unit for any given quantity; for example, length would be measured in meters instead of in feet, inches, rods, ells, hands, or any number of other specialized measures that may or may not be readily expressed in terms of each other. Second, that there would be a system in place for dealing with different scales, where units could be expressed as powers of ten instead of numerous arbitrary ratios between scales. The third principle of the metric system is that there would only be a few base units that can be used to define all the others. The most common set of base units, the one used by the SI units, is based on meters, kilograms, and seconds, although a system based on centimeters, grams, and seconds is used in some situations, such as astronomy and some electromagnetic applications.
System International (SI); system of measurement used by most countries in the world.
A system of measurement based on tens (the decimal system). The basic unit of length is the meter. The basic unit of mass is the gram. The basic unit of capacity is the liter.
A system of weights and measures accepted as an international standard as the Systeme International d’Unites (SI) in 1960. The metre (meter in the United States) is the unit of length.
A decimal system of weights and measures based on the meter and on the kilogram.
The metric system is a decimalised system of measurement based on the metre and the gram. It exists in several variations, with different choices of base units, though these do not affect its day-to-day use. Over the last two centuries, different variants have been considered the metric system.