troy weight

noun

a system of weights in use for precious metals and gems (formerly also for bread, grain, etc.): 24 grains = 1 pennyweight (1.555 grams); 20 pennyweights = 1 ounce (31.103 grams); 12 ounces = 1 pound (0.373 kilogram). The grain, ounce, and pound are the same as in apothecaries' weight, the grain alone being the same as in avoirdupois weight. The troy pound is no longer a standard weight in Great Britain.

Origin of troy weight

late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75

Words Nearby troy weight

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use troy weight in a sentence

But milk is in units of liquid measure; gold in incommensurable units of troy weight.
Social Value | B. M. Anderson
On an average, however, they may be taken at 162 grains troy weight.
An Account of The Kingdom of Nepal | Fancis Buchanan Hamilton
In troy weight—Troy where the hay scales come from—the answer was written.
One Third Off | Irvin S. Cobb
Those things sound well, but they are shadowy and indefinite, like troy weight and avoirdupois; nobody knows what they mean.
Following the Equator, Complete | Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
Another table of weights, called the table of troy weight, is used by goldsmiths and jewelers for weighing precious metals.
Woman's Institute Library of Cookery, Vol. 1 | Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences

British Dictionary definitions for troy weight

troy weight

troy

/ (trɔɪ) /

noun

a system of weights used for precious metals and gemstones, based on the grain, which is identical to the avoirdupois grain. 24 grains = 1 pennyweight; 20 pennyweights = 1 (troy) ounce; 12 ounces = 1 (troy) pound

Origin of troy weight

C14: named after the city of Troyes, France, where it was first used

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for troy weight

troy weight

[ troi ]

A system of weights and measures in which the grain is the same as in the avoirdupois system, and a pound contains 12 ounces, or 5,760 grains. Troy weight is used primarily by miners and gold dealers. Compare avoirdupois weight.

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