ton
noun pl. tons, ton
- a unit of weight, equal to 2,000 pounds avoirdupois (907.1847 kilograms or 0.90718 metric ton or 0.8929 long ton), commonly used in the U.S., Canada, South Africa, etc.
- a unit of weight, equal to 2,240 pounds avoirdupois (1,016.0469 kilograms or 1.016 metric tons or 1.12 short tons), commonly used in Great Britain
- metric ton
- a unit of internal capacity of ships, equal to 100 cubic feet (or 2.8317 cubic meters)
- a unit of carrying capacity of ships, usually equal to 40 cubic feet
also called measurement ton or freight ton
- a unit for measuring displacement of ships, equal to 35 cubic feet: it is approximately equal to the volume of a long ton of sea water
- ☆ a unit of cooling capacity of an air conditioner, equal to 12,000 Btu per hour
- Informal a very large amount or number
See ton in American Heritage Dictionary 4
(tŭn)
noun Abbr. t. or
tn.- A unit of weight equal to 2,000 pounds (0.907 metric ton or 907.18 kilograms). Also called net ton, short ton.
- A unit of weight equal to 2,240 pounds (1.016 metric tons or 1,016.05 kilograms). Also called long ton.
- A metric ton. See Table at measurement.
- A unit of capacity for cargo in maritime shipping, normally estimated at 40 cubic feet.
- A unit of internal capacity of a ship equal to 100 cubic feet.
- A unit for measuring the displacement of ships, equal to 35 cubic feet, and supposed to equal the volume taken by a long ton of seawater.
- Informal
a. A large extent, amount, or number. Often used in the plural: has a ton of work; gets tons of fan mail.
b. Used adverbially with a or in the plural to mean “to a great degree or extent” or “frequently”: felt a ton better; has seen her tons lately.
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