caliber

Caliber is defined as the diameter size of a bullet.

(noun)

An example of caliber is a gun that needs a .45 measured bullet.

The definition of caliber is something’s worth or ability.

(noun)

An example of caliber is being highly qualified for a job for which you are recommended.

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See caliber in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

  1. the size of a bullet or shell as measured by its diameter
  2. the diameter of the bore of a gun, usually measured in hundredths of inches or in millimeters
  3. the diameter of a cylindrical body or of its hollowed interior
  4. degree of worth or value of a person or thing; quality or ability

Origin: Fr & Sp, ult. < Ar qālib, a mold, last, < Aram < Gr kalopodion, shoemaker's last, lit., little wooden foot < kalon, wood + pous (gen. podos), foot

Also, esp. Brit., calibre

See caliber in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun
  1. Abbr. cal.
    a. The diameter of the inside of a round cylinder, such as a tube.
    b. The diameter of the bore of a firearm, usually shown in hundredths or thousandths of an inch and expressed in writing or print in terms of a decimal fraction: .45 caliber.
    c. The diameter of a large projectile, such as an artillery shell, measured in millimeters or in inches.
  2. Degree of worth; quality: a school of high caliber; an executive of low caliber.

Origin:

Origin: French calibre

Origin: , from Italian calibro

Origin: , from Arabic qālib, qālab, mold, shoe tree

Origin: , from Greek kālapous, shoemaker's last

Origin: : kālon, wood

Origin: + pous, foot; see ped- in Indo-European roots

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