ounce
Use Ounce in a sentence
noun
1.
a unit of weight equal to 437.5 grains or 1 / 16 pound (28.349 grams) avoirdupois.
2.
a unit of 480 grains, 1 / 12 pound (31.103 grams) troy or apothecaries' weight.
3.
a fluid ounce.
4.
a small quantity or portion.
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English unce < Middle French < Latin uncia twelfth part, inch, ounce, derivative of unus one
1350–1400; Middle English unce < Middle French < Latin uncia twelfth part, inch, ounce, derivative of unus one
00:10
Ounce
is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
noun
Origin:
1300–50; Middle English unce lynx < Anglo-French; Old French once, variant of lonce (erroneously taken as l'once the ounce) < Vulgar Latin *luncea, derivative of Latin lync- (stem of lynx) lynx
1300–50; Middle English unce lynx < Anglo-French; Old French once, variant of lonce (erroneously taken as l'once the ounce) < Vulgar Latin *luncea, derivative of Latin lync- (stem of lynx) lynx
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To ounce
Collins
World English Dictionary
ounce1 (aʊns) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | oz a unit of weight equal to one sixteenth of a pound (avoirdupois); 1 ounce is equal to 437.5 grains or 28.349 grams |
| 2. | a unit of weight equal to one twelfth of a Troy or Apothecaries' pound; 1 ounce is equal to 480 grains or 31.103 grams |
| 3. | short for fluid ounce |
| 4. | a small portion or amount |
| [C14: from Old French unce, from Latin uncia a twelfth; from ūnus one] | |
| ounce2 (aʊns) | |
| —n | |
| another name for snow leopard | |
| [C18: from Old French once, by mistaken division of lonce as if l'once, from Latin | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
ounce
"unit of weight," early 14c., from O.Fr. unce (12c.), from L. uncia "one-twelfth part" (of a pound, foot, etc.), from L. unus "one" (see one). The L. word had been adopted in O.E. as ynce (see inch). It was one-twelfth of a pound in the Troy system
of weights, but one-sixteenth in avoirdupois. Abbreviation oz. is from It. onza. Also used in M.E. as a measure of time (7.5 seconds) and length (about 3 inches).
ounce
"wildcat," c.1300, from O.Fr. once, from lonce, with l- mistaken as definite article, from V.L. *luncea, from L. lyncea "lynx-like," from lynx (see lynx). Originally the common lynx, later extended to other wildcats, now mainly used of the mountain-panther or snow leopard of Asia.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
ounce (ouns)
n.
Abbr. oz, oz.
A unit of weight in the U.S. Customary System, an avoirdupois unit equal to 437.5 grains or 28.35 grams.
A unit of apothecary weight equal to 480 grains or 31.10 grams.
A fluid ounce.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
ounce (ouns) Pronunciation Key
|
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases
ounce
In addition to the idiom beginning with ounce, also see more bang for the buck (bounce for the ounce).
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Example sentences
If put to the pinch, an ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness.
To that, a group of researchers is saying that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
So the industry has adopted a strategy that counters a pound of sugar with an ounce of nutrition.
The price of gold looks as if it used to be stable, because the dollar was fixed relative to an ounce of gold.
Idioms & Phrases
Nearby Words
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