European measure. Why didn't the USA switch to the metric system? Household units of measurement: box of chocolates, box of flour, glass of water, etc.

Despite the fact that the decimal number system (positional number system in integer base 10, one of the most common systems; it uses the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 0, called Arabic numerals ; it is assumed that base 10 is associated with the number of fingers on a person’s hands) is very common in modern life, and it is not uncommon to find English and American measures of calculation... The English system of measures is used in the USA, Myanmar and Liberia. Some of these measures in a number of countries differ somewhat in size, so below are mainly rounded metric equivalents of English measures, convenient for practical calculations.

Length measures

The variety and accuracy of modern measuring instruments is amazing. But what did our ancestors use in the absence of measuring instruments? To measure length, our ancestors used the measurements of their own body - fingers, elbows, steps...

One of the most common measures of length is the mile. The mile is used to measure the distance of air and land routes.

mile(from Latin mille passuum - a thousand double steps of Roman soldiers in full armor on the march) - a travel measure for measuring distance, introduced in Ancient Rome. The mile was used in a number of countries in ancient times, as well as in many modern countries before the introduction of the metric system. In countries with a non-metric system of measures, the mile is still used today. The mileage varies from country to country and ranges from 0.58 km(Egypt) to 11.3 km(old Norwegian mile). Back in the 18th century, Europe had 46 different units of measurement called miles.

British and American (statutory) mile = 8 furlongs = 1760 yards = 5280 feet = 1609.34 meters (160934.4 centimeters).

This unit of length is now commonly used in the United States to measure road length and speed.

Nautical mile- a unit of distance used in navigation and aviation.

According to the modern definition, adopted at the International Hydrographic Conference in Monaco in 1929, the International Nautical Mile is equal to exactly 1852 meters. The nautical mile is not an SI unit, however, according to the decision of the General Conference on Weights and Measures, its use is permitted, although not recommended. There is no generally accepted designation; Sometimes the abbreviations "NM", "nm" or "nmi" are used. nautical mile). It should be noted that the abbreviation “nm” coincides with the officially accepted designation of nanometer.

International nautical mile = 10 cables = 1/3 sea league

UK nautical mile before the transition to the international system (before 1970) = 1853.184 meters.

US nautical mile before the transition to the international system (before 1955) = 1853,248 meters or 6080.20 feet.

Foot(Russian designation: foot; international: ft, as well as ‘ - stroke; from English foot - foot) - a unit of length in the English system of measures. The exact linear value varies from country to country. In 1958, at a conference of English-speaking countries, participating countries unified their units of length and mass. The resulting “international” foot began to equal exactly 0.3048 m. This is what is most often meant by “foot” nowadays.

Inch(Russian designation: inch; international: inch, in or ″ - double stroke; from Dutch duim - thumb) - a non-metric unit of measurement of distance and length in some systems of measures. Currently, the inch usually means the English inch used in the USA, equal to 25.4 mm.

Yard(English yard) - British and American unit of measurement of distance. Nowadays a metric yard is equal to three metric feet ( 36 inches) or 91.44 cm. Not included in the SI system. There are several versions of the origin of the name and size of the yard. A large measure of length, called the yard, was introduced by the English king Edgar (959-975) and was equal to the distance from the tip of His Majesty's nose to the tip of the middle finger of his outstretched hand. As soon as the monarch changed, the yard became different - it lengthened, since the new king was of a larger build than his predecessor. Then, on the next change of king, the yard became shorter again. Such frequent changes in the unit of length created confusion. According to other versions, a yard is the circumference of the monarch's waist or the length of his sword. King Henry I (1100-1135) legalized a permanent yard in 1101 and ordered a standard to be made from elm. This yard is still used in England (its length is 0.9144 m). The yard was divided into 2, 4, 8 and 16 parts, called respectively half-yard, span, finger and nail.

Line- a unit of distance measurement in Russian, English (English line) and some other systems of measures. The name came into Russian through Polish. linea or germ. Line from lat. līnea - linen twine; the strip drawn by this string. In the English system of measures, 1 line (“small”) = 1⁄12 inch = 2.11666666…mm. This unit was rarely used, since the technique used tenths, hundredths and thousandths (“mils”) of an inch. Measurements in biology and typography used this unit, abbreviating it as "(outside these areas, the line was designated as "', and " was and is used to denote the inch). The (large) lines measure the caliber of the weapon.

League(English League) - British and American unit of distance measurement.

1 league = 3 miles = 24 furlongs = 4828.032 meters.

The league value has long been used in naval battles to determine the distance of a cannon shot. Later it began to be used for land and postal affairs.

Measures of liquid and granular bodies

Basic measures:

Barrel(English barrel - barrel) - a measure of the volume of bulk substances and liquids, equal to a “barrel”. Used to measure volume in economic calculations and in some countries.

To measure the volume of bulk solids there was a so-called “English barrel”: 1 English barrel = 4.5 bushels = 163.66 liters. IN USA A standard liquid barrel is 31.5 US gallons, that is: 1 US barrel = 31.5 US gallons = 119.2 liters = 1/2 hogshead.

However, when measuring beer volume (due to tax restrictions), the so-called standard beer barrel, which is equal 31 US gallon(117.3 liters).

Also used in the United States is a unit called "dry barrel"(dry barrel), which is equal to 105 dry quarts (115.6 liters).

For the most frequently used concept of a barrel in the world (namely, for oil), there is a special measure that is different from all of those listed (Oil Barrel).

1 Oil barrel = 158.987 liters. International designation: bbls.

Bushel(English bushel) - a unit of volume used in the English system of measures. Used for measuring bulk goods, mainly agricultural, but not liquids. Abbreviated as bsh. or bu.

In the British Imperial System of Measures for bulk solids: 1 bushel = 4 pecks = 8 gallons = 32 dry quarts = 64 dry pints = 1.032 US bushels = 2219.36 cubic inches = 36.36872 l (dm³) = 3 pails.

In the American system of measures for bulk solids: 1 bushel = 0.9689 English bushels = 35.2393 L; according to other sources: 1 bushel = 35.23907017 l = 9.309177489 US gallons.

In addition, a bushel is a container for storing and transporting apples. In international trade, a bushel typically refers to a box weighing 18 kg.

Gallon(English gallon) - a measure of volume in the English system of measures, corresponding to 3.79 to 4.55 liters (depending on the country of use). Typically used for liquids, in rare cases - for solids. The sub-multiple units of a gallon are the pint and the ounce. US gallon is equal to 3.785411784 liters. A gallon was originally defined as the volume of 8 pounds of wheat. Pint is a derivative of gallon - one eighth I'm part of it. Later, other varieties of the gallon were introduced for other products and, accordingly, new varieties of pints appeared. America adopted the British wine gallon, defined in 1707 as 231 cubic inches, as a basic measure of liquid volume. This is where the American liquid pint was developed. The British corn gallon was also adopted ( 268.8 cubic inches) as a measure of the volume of granular bodies. This is where the American dry pint comes from. In 1824, the British Parliament replaced all versions of the gallon with one imperial gallon, defined as 10 pounds of distilled water at 62°F ( 277.42 cubic inches).

The difference between the American gallon and the English gallon is:

• US gallon ≈ 3.785 liters;
• English gallon = 4.5461 liters.

In the US, the standard liquid barrel is 42 US gallons, that is: 1 US barrel = 42 US gallons = 159 liters = 1/2 hogshead. However, when measuring beer volume (due to tax restrictions), the US uses the so-called standard beer barrel, which is equal to 31 US gallons (117.3 liters).

Ounce(lat. uncia) - the name of several units of measurement of mass, as well as two measures of volume of liquid bodies, one unit of measurement of force and several monetary units formed as a twelfth of another unit. The term comes from ancient Rome, where an ounce meant a twelfth of a libra. It was one of the main weight units of medieval Europe. Today it is used when trading precious metals - the troy ounce, as well as in countries where weight is measured in pounds (for example, the USA). Quart(English quart from Latin quartus - quarter) - a unit of volume used in the USA, Great Britain and other countries to measure bulk or liquid volumes, equal to a quarter of a gallon.

• 1 quart = 2 pints = 1/4 gallon.
• 1 US dry quart = 1.1012209 liters.
• 1 US quart for liquids = 0.9463 liters.
• 1 imperial quart = 1.1365 l.

Area measures

Acre(English acre) - a land measure used in a number of countries with the English system of measures (for example, in the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and others). Originally it denoted the area of ​​land cultivated per day by one peasant with one ox.

1 acre = 4 ore = 4046.86 m² ≈ 0.004 km² (1/250 km²) = 4840 square yards = 888.97 square fathoms = 0.37 dessiatines = 0.405 hectares = 40.46856 ar = 1/30 land yards = 1 /640 square miles

Township(English township - village, town) - an American unit of measurement of land area, which is a plot of land the size 6x6 miles = 36 sq. miles = 93.24 sq. km.

Hyde(English hide - plot, plot of land) - an old English land measure, originally equal to a plot of land that could feed one family, is 80-120 acres or 32.4-48.6 hectares.

Rude(English rood - piece of land) - land measure = 40 sq. gender = 1011.68 sq. m.

Ar(English are from Latin area - area, surface, agricultural land) - a land measure in the Anglo-American and metric system of measures, is a plot of land measuring 10x10 m and equals 100 sq. m or 0.01 hectares, in everyday life it is called “weaving”.

Cubic volume measures

Ton(English ton(ne), ton, tun from French tonne - large wooden barrel) - a unit of measurement for various purposes. Before the adoption of the metric system, the ton measure was widely used in Europe and America as a measure of the capacity of bulk and liquids, a measure of weight and a land measure. In the Anglo-American system of measures, a ton is:

1. Measure of cubic volume

• Register ton(register) - unit of measurement of the capacity of merchant ships = 100 cu. ft = 2.83 cu. m.
• Freight ton(freight) - unit of measurement of ship cargo - 40 cu. ft = 1.13 cu. m.

2. Trade weight measure

• Large ton(gross, long) = 2240 lbs = 1016 kg.
• Small ton(net, short) = 2000 lbs = 907.18 kg.
• Ton in metric system defined in 1000 kg or 2204.6 lbs.

3. Old English measure of liquid capacity(tun) (mainly for wine and beer) = 252 gallons = 1145.59 l.

Standard(English standard - norm) - a measure of the volume of lumber = 165 cc ft = 4.672 cu. m.

Cord(English cord from French corde - rope) - a measure of the volume of firewood and round timber. Big(gross) cord is equal to a stack of firewood 4x4x8ft =128 cu.m. ft = 3.624 cu. m. Small cord (short) for round timber = 126 cc ft = 3.568 cu. m.

Stack(English stack - heap, pile) - English measure of the volume of coal and firewood = 108 cu. ft = 3.04 cu. m.

Loud(English load - load, heaviness) - a measure of wood volume, equal for round timber 40 cu. feet or 1.12 cu. m; for lumber - 50 cu. feet or 1,416 cu.m. m.

Measures rarely used in everyday life

Barleycorn(English barleycorn - barley grain) length of barley grain = 1/3 inch = 8.47 mm.

Mil(English mil, abbreviated from mille - thousandth) - a unit of measurement of distance in the English system of measures, equal to 1⁄1000 inch. Used in electronics and to measure the diameter of thin wire, gaps or thickness of thin sheets. Also denoted as th.

1 mil = 1⁄1000 inch = 0.0254 mm = 25.4 micrometers

Hand(hand; English hand - “hand”) - a unit of measurement of length in the English system of measures. Used to measure the height of horses in some English-speaking countries, including Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States. It was originally based on the breadth of the human hand. In English-speaking countries, abbreviations of this unit of measurement to “h” or “hh” are common.

hand = 4 inches = 10.16 cm.

Cheyne(ch) (English chain - chain) - an outdated British and American unit of distance measurement, equal to 20.1168 meters.

1 chain = 100 links = 1⁄10 furlong = 4 rods = 66 feet = 20.1168 meters

Furlong(Old English furh - furrow, rut, etc. long - long) - British and American unit of distance measurement.

1 furlong = ⅛ mile = 10 chains = 220 yards = 40 rods = 660 feet = 1000 links = 201.16 m.

5 furlongs are approximately equal to 1.0058 km.

The furlong is currently used as a unit of distance in horse racing in the UK, Ireland and the USA.

Hand(English hand - hand) - a measure of length, initially equal to the width of the palm, is 4 inches or 10.16 cm. Horses' height is usually measured using the palm of their hand.

Fathom(fathom) (English fathom from Anglo-Saxon fǽthm from German faden - to grasp) - a measure of length, initially equal to the distance between the ends of the fingers of outstretched hands and amounts to 6 feet or 1.83 m. This measure is used mainly in maritime affairs to determine the depth of water and in mountain (mine) measurements.

El(English ell from Swedish aln - elbow) - an old English measure of length, perhaps originally equal to the length of the entire arm, contains 45 inches or 1.14 m, was used to measure fabrics.
Qubit(English cubit from Latin cubitus - elbow) - an old English measure of length, originally equal to the distance from the elbow to the end of the middle finger of the outstretched hand, contains from 18 before 22 inches or 46-56 cm.

Span(English span) - a measure of length, initially equal to the distance between the ends of the thumb and little finger, stretched in the plane of the hand, is 9 inches or 22.86 cm.

Link(English link - chain link) - a measure of length used in geodetic and construction work: 1 geodetic link = 7.92 inches = 20.12 cm; 1 construction link = 1 foot = 30.48 cm.

Finger(English finger - finger) - a measure of length equal to the length of the middle finger, contains 4.5 inches or 11.43 cm. To determine the depth of water, a measure equal to the width of a finger is used, containing 3/4 inch or 1.91 cm.

Neil(English nail - needle) - an ancient measure of length for fabrics, equal to 2 1/4 inches or 5.71 cm.

Cable(English cable’s length from the Gol. kabeltouw - sea rope) - a marine measure of length, initially equal to the length of the anchor rope. In international maritime practice, cable lengths are 0.1 nautical mile and is equal 185.2 m. IN England 1 cable contains 680 feet and equals 183 m. IN USA 1 cable contains 720 feet and equals 219.5 m.

Table of the most common English measurements

For convenience, the main English measurements are summarized in a table.

Conversion tables for feet and inches to centimeters (height) and pounds to kilograms (weight).

Hello, my dear readers! We all know the “golden rule” of an Internet shopaholic:

“Carefully study the reviews of a new brand or product before you buy it!”

How often have you seen reviews like this:

"I'm 5′ 8″ 180 and the large was huge on me, the length is above the ankles but well below the knee. I’ve always had a small waist for my size even after gaining 25lbs over the..."

« I'm a very large woman ( 5'6″ tall and 260lbs. Size 48DDD chest. I wanted a long dress that was basic and comfy vs a “moo-moo” This thing fit the bill. Of… «

“I bought one in every color! I am petite ( 5′ 2″) and I like that it comes right across the tops of my feet! Pairs perfectly with..."

What do these numbers, unusual for the Belarusian eye, mean? Just height and weight (yes, not parameters (90-60-90), as is customary here, but weight).

To measure length, Americans use feet And inches, and for measuring weight - pounds. So, the first review given as an example was written by a person with a height of 173 cm and a weight of 82 kg (5′ 8″ 180).

If you, like me, do not like to study reviews of happy and not so American customers with a calculator in hand, then here is a nice table for converting feet and inches to centimeters to help us all:

If you need a different length that does not fit in the table, you will still have to arm yourself with a calculator:

1 Foot = 30.48 cm

1 Inch = 2.54 cm

I still haven’t learned how to navigate clothing sizes based on a person’s weight. But what if you are the guru of this? Then this table for converting pounds to kilograms will help you:

1 Pound = 0.454 kg

Here is such a short, but, I hope, useful article.)))

P.S. Ask all your questions in the comments to this article - I will be happy to answer them! And don't forget SHOPOKlang so you don't miss new interesting articles!

Regions that do not use the metric system as their primary system are marked in red. Not many countries, right?

Most immigrants consider the most difficult thing when moving to America to be the transition to another measurement system: instead of the usual meters, degrees Celsius and kilograms, a completely new world is falling upon people, in which all the usual realities are measured in a completely illogical way, from their point of view.

But one story says that the United States actually had the opportunity to live according to the metric system, but they were prevented from doing so... by British pirates!

The Washington Post published this story, simultaneously lamenting that Americans still have the opportunity to “come to their senses” and switch to a “more understandable, simpler and more logical” metric system - or, as it is now called, the International System of Units (French: Le Systeme International d'Unites, S.I.).

However, we are talking about the time when Parisian scientists decided for the first time to bring all units of measurement into a single system. To this end, they proposed that the American Congress come to a general agreement. At that time, the Secretary of State was Thomas Jefferson, who welcomed the unification of the measurement system. So in 1793, a ship was sent from Paris towards America, on which the botanist and aristocrat Joseph Dombey was carrying two standards of the metric system: a rod exactly one meter long and a copper cylinder weighing exactly one kilogram.

Unfortunately, on the way across the Atlantic, the ship with Dombey on board was caught in a storm, and as a result, they were carried by the current into the Caribbean Sea - straight into the hands of local pirates. In fact, the pirates did not consider themselves as such: they were British subjects who were given permission by the Queen herself to attack any non-British ships. But in essence, they were still engaged in piracy. So the French crew, along with the academician, were imprisoned (Joseph Dombey did not last long in captivity and soon died), and all property found on the ship, including standards, were sold at auction.

A copy of the 1 kg standard stored in the USA.

But of course this is just a story...

There is an opinion that the SI system was never approved in the United States. It is so invisible in this country that a person who does not go into too much detail may get such an impression. But it is absolutely not true! A number of acts have been adopted approving it as the official system of weights and measures of the United States. How then is it that Americans still use ancient units of measurement? The fact is that all adopted acts are of a recommendatory (and not mandatory) nature for private businesses and ordinary residents of the country. This means that every American has the right to measure in the usual inches and weigh in the pounds familiar from childhood. And this right is enjoyed not only by people, but also by giant corporations.

There are only three countries in the world that have not yet switched to the SI system. These are the USA, Liberia and Myanmar (until 1989 - Burma). The rest of the world's nations either switched to the metric system completely or at least officially accepted it as the standard. Another thing is how things stand among the people. In Russia even now they can call a kilometer “verst” in a conversation, but at the same time everyone clearly understands that we are talking about the most ordinary metric kilometer, and not about the ancient Russian verst.

But in the USA, the ancient folk system of weights and measures is used not only in everyday life. Football fields are measured in yards. The work done by car engines is in outlandish foot-pounds. Atmospheric pressure is in pounds per square inch.

Instead of the International SI System, the United States uses U.S. Customary System (US Traditional System). It includes more than three hundred units of measurement of various physical quantities. The difficulty is that many of these units of measurement have the same name, but mean completely different things.

Let us present the simplest and most understandable to every person, even those very far from engineering wisdom. It would seem, what could be complicated in a ton? This is a thousand kilograms and nothing else! But in the United States there are at least nine definitions of the concept of “ton”: short ton, displacement ton, refrigerated ton, nuclear ton, freight ton. , register ton, metric ton, jewelry ton, fuel ton or ton of coal equivalent.

And despite all these obvious complexities, neither business nor everyday life in the United States uses a simple, clear and unambiguous metric system. The reasons for this lie, as often happens, in the history of this country.

The US attitude to the metric system was initially determined by its relationship with France

The British Imperial System was used in the British colonies. At the end of the 18th century, the metric system was developed in France. Which, of course, was not accepted by either Britain itself or its colonies.

When the United States gained independence, attempts were made to streamline the system of measuring quantities. But they came up against, as often happens, a financial issue. Thomas Jefferson, who served as US Secretary of State under George Washington, favored the decimal system. But it turned out that it would be impossible to determine metric units of length without sending a delegation to France. And this was an expensive matter.

Relations with France, which supported the United States in its struggle for independence, entered a cooling stage after 1795. When France invited representatives from various countries to familiarize themselves with the metric system in 1798, Americans were met with disdain.

And yet, representatives of the United States visited Paris and were delighted with the metric system. But the likelihood of convincing the country's leaders of the need to switch to a new system of weights and measures coming from France was very weak. In 1821, US Secretary of State John Quincy studied the units of measurement of 22 states of the country and concluded that the U.S. The Customary System is sufficiently unified and does not need to be changed.

Napoleon reigned in France, and the Americans had doubts that the French themselves would remain faithful to the system of weights and measures they had created. As a result, consideration of the metric system in the United States ceased at the historical stage in question. But this does not mean that it was not returned to again and again as the SI system gained increasing recognition in various corners of our vast world.

In 1865, the American Civil War ended. The Americans looked around and discovered that most European countries had switched to the decimal metric system. And this obvious fact could no longer be ignored in the United States. In 1866, the country's Congress passed an act that made the metric system the official system for use in all contracts, transactions and lawsuits.

Nine years later, France gathered representatives from the world's leading countries to discuss the details of a new international version of the metric system. The United States received an invitation and sent its delegation. Representatives of these countries signed an international convention, founding the International Bureau of Weights and Measures and the International Committee of Weights and Measures, whose tasks included reviewing and adopting changes.

The agreement provided for the creation of a special hall in the French city of Servais near Paris, where the standards of metric standards, in particular the standard meter, were to be placed. This made it possible to avoid difficulties in understanding by different peoples what exactly is meant by this or that unit of measurement.

In 1890, the United States received copies of the International Standard Meter and the International Standard Kilogram. The Mendenhall Order (named after the Superintendent of Weights and Measures) established metric units as the fundamental standard for length and weight in the United States. A yard was defined as 3600/3937 meters and a pound as 0.4535924277 kilograms.

In 1959, English-speaking countries made some clarifications: 1 yard was equal to 0.9144 meters, and 1 pound to 0.4535923. That is, formally, the United States has already adopted the metric system as the standard of weights and measures for 145 years, and for about 120 years in this country everything should have been measured in meters and kilograms. But, as practice shows, making a decision does not mean its implementation in real life.

Many prominent US scientists and politicians were proponents of making the metric system mandatory for the entire country. In 1971, it began to look like the United States would finally become one of the countries that adopted the metric system. The National Bureau of Standards released the Metric America report, which recommended that the country switch to the metric system within ten years.

In 1975, Congress passed the Metric Conversion Act, the essence of which was the same as the recommendations of the standards specialists, but with only two important differences. There were no strict time frames, and the transition to the metric system itself assumed voluntariness. As a result, the country's schoolchildren began to undergo the SI system, and some companies attempted “metrification,” which turned into ineffective propaganda, since there was no real action to switch to metric units of measurement.

It turns out that the United States uses units of measurement that have already been forgotten in the rest of the world. An increasing number of consumers of American products began to demand that the supplied goods be accompanied by an indication of the characteristics in the metric system. As American companies opened more and more production facilities in Europe and Asia, it became necessary to decide whether to use metric or traditional US units.

Recognizing these challenges, in 1988 Congress amended the Metric Conversion Act to make the metric system "the preferred system of weights and measures of the United States for the purposes of trade and commerce." As of the end of 1992, federal agencies were required to use metric units when measuring quantities related to procurement, grants, and other matters relevant to business activities. But these instructions applied only to government agencies. Private business remained free to use the familiar system of measuring quantities. Attempts have been made to get small businesses interested in the metric system, but little progress has been made.

Today, only about 30% of products manufactured in the United States are “metered.” The United States pharmaceutical industry is called "strictly metric" because all the specifications of the country's pharmaceutical products are specified exclusively in metric units. Drinks are labeled in both metric and traditional US units. The industry is considered "soft metric". The metric system is also used in the United States by film, tool, and bicycle manufacturers. Otherwise, in the US they prefer to measure the old fashioned way. In ancient inches and pounds. And this applies even to such a young industry as high technology.

What prevents a very developed industrial country from switching to the generally accepted system of weights and measures on our planet? There are a number of reasons for this.

Conservatism and cost prevent metric adoption

One of the reasons is the costs that the country's economy would have to bear in the event of a transition to the SI system. After all, technical drawings and instructions for the most complex equipment would have to be reworked. This would require a lot of work from highly paid specialists. And, therefore, money. For example, NASA engineers reported that converting space shuttle blueprints, software, and documentation to metric units would cost US$370 million, about half the cost of a conventional space shuttle launch.

But high conversion costs alone cannot explain Americans' lukewarm attitude toward the metric system. Psychological factors play their own, and not the least, role in restraining the process of the country’s transition to the international system of weights and measures. The stubborn conservatism of Americans makes them resist any innovations, especially those that come from foreigners.

Americans always like to have their own way. Individualism is the main feature of the representatives of this people. The descendants of the conquerors of the vast expanses of the Wild West stubbornly reject attempts to force them to give up the inches and pounds they were accustomed to since childhood.

No amount of high technology can force a person to reconsider his conservative views. For example, commercial mobile communications have existed since 1947. But it really only became interesting in the early 1980s. Events happen only when the consciousness of the average person is ready to accept them. And this, in turn, is only possible if a person sees meaning in this. But the average American simply doesn’t see much meaning for himself personally in the metric system.

Therefore, all efforts to introduce the metric system in the United States run up against the impregnable stronghold of the everyday life of ordinary citizens of the country who do not want to use meters and kilograms. There is another important reason, which we talked about a little earlier. A significant portion of the world's largest corporations are located in the United States. Their products are competitive in the global market even despite the unusual inches and pounds. What unusual things are there! The whole world will be greatly surprised if one day the screen diagonal of the next smartphone will be indicated in centimeters familiar from school, and not in inches, seemingly straight from the pages of a history textbook. This means that Americans have no reason to abandon their traditional system of weights and measures.

sources
Based on materials from science.howstuffworks.com

Greetings, dear readers! Very often in films we hear about inches, yards, miles, acres. Almost every day the news says that a barrel of oil has risen in price by so many dollars. And if we imagine how much this is approximately in rubles, then we have no idea exactly how much oil in liters. Therefore, knowing the units of measurement in the USA, Canada and England is necessary not only for students of English, but will also be useful for the general development of everyone in order to imagine what is said in the news, literature or movies.

English units and measures of length, weight, volume, area, mass and other indicators are very different from those in Russian. Many of them, as I already said, you could have heard from movies, TV shows or news, or read in English literature. But in the USA and England, as well as in Australia and Canada, there are units of measurement that are not known to Russian speakers at all. For example, bushel, mil, rod, pepper and many others.

Sometimes it is very difficult to navigate new material or interesting information in English precisely because of ignorance of the meanings of some foreign measures. Therefore, in this article we will analyze in detail the units of measurement in English, find out their names, and approximately how much it will be if translated into familiar units of weight, length, speed, volume and distance.

The English measurement system is used not only in England and the USA, but also in other English-speaking countries. Great Britain, as a European country, has long adopted the decimal and metric system of measures, but the press and ordinary people are in no hurry to accept the new system and use the old one. The most common measures of length, weight and volume in English are barrel, foot, pint, acre, yard, inch and mile.

• 1 fluid ounce (fl. oz.) = 28.43 ml (cm³)
• 1 oz = 28.6 g
• Short ton = 907 kg
• Long ton = 1016.05 kg
• Barrel = 163.6 l
• Barrel of oil = 158.98 l
• 1 lb = 453.5 g
• 1 acre = 0.4 ha
• 1 yard = 0.9144 m
• 1 inch = 2.54 cm
• 1 pint = 507 ml
• 1 grain = 64.8 mg

This is only a small part of the units of measurement in English. In fact, there are more than a hundred of them. You won't be able to learn them all, but it would be nice to get acquainted with the most popular ones. After all, in newspapers, on radio and television, we regularly encounter these incomprehensible words, symbols and designations in English or their tracing paper in Russian.

Table of the most common English measurements

To make it easier for you to navigate each unit of measure, I divided them into categories, found their approximate values ​​in our system, and placed them in a convenient table. This table can be downloaded and saved to your computer, or printed and hung in a visible place so that you can easily look into it if necessary.

Some indicators are given as approximate values. In printed form you can find abbreviations, but, more often than not, you can guess the full name from the abbreviations. To convert the desired unit into the lengths we need, meters, liters, and kilograms and other weight indicators, we can use rounding, division and multiplication.

If you are not going to live in the USA, Australia, England or Canada, then you can simply look at this table. But if you're going to work,