Wiktionary

ounce

English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /aʊns/
  • Rhymes: -aʊns
  • Audio (UK):(file)

Etymology 1

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From Middle English ounce, unce, from Middle French once, from Latin uncia (“Roman ounce, various similar units”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *óynos (“one”). Doublet of a, one, inch, uncia, onça, onza, oka, ouguiya, and awqiyyah.

Noun

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ounce (plural ounces)

  1. An avoirdupois ounce, weighing 1⁄16 of an avoirdupois pound, or 28.349523125 grams.
  2. A troy ounce, weighing 1⁄12 of a troy pound, or 480 grains, or 31.1034768 grams.
  3. A US fluid ounce, with a volume of 1⁄16 of a US pint, 1.804688 cubic inches or 29.5735295625 millilitres.
  4. A British imperial fluid ounce, with a volume of 1⁄20 of an imperial pint, 1.733871 cubic inches or 28.4130625 millilitres.
  5. (figurative) Any small amount, a little bit.
    He didn't feel even an ounce of regret for his actions.
Synonyms
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Derived terms
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Descendants
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  • → Tokelauan: aunehe
Translations
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Etymology 2

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From Middle French once, from Old French lonce (“lynx”), by false division (the l was thought to be the article), from Italian lonza, ultimately from Ancient Greek λύγξ (lúnx, “lynx”). Doublet of onza and lynx.

Noun

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ounce (plural ounces)

  1. (archaic) A large wild feline, such as a lynx or cougar. [from 14th c.]
    • 1634, William Wood, “Of the Beasts that Live on the Land”, in New Englands Prospect. A True, Lively, and Experimentall Description of that Part of America, Commonly Called New England; […], London: […] Tho[mas] Cotes, for Iohn Bellamie, […], →OCLC, 1st part, page 23:
      The Ounce or the vvilde Cat, is as big as a mungrell dog, this creature is by nature feirce, and more dangerous to bee met vvithall than any other creature, not fearing eyther dogge or man; […]
    • 1801, Robert Southey, “(please specify the page)”, in Thalaba the Destroyer, volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: […] [F]or T[homas] N[orton] Longman and O[wen] Rees, […], by Biggs and Cottle, […], →OCLC:
      Halloa! another prey,
      The nimble Antelope!
      The ounce is freed; one spring,
      And his talons are sheath’d in her shoulders,
      And his teeth are red in her gore.
  2. Synonym of snow leopard, Panthera uncia. [from 18th c.]
  3. (cryptozoology) Synonym of onza, a particularly aggressive cougar or jaguarundi in Mexican folklore.
    • 1911, James George Frazer, The Golden Bough, volume 8, page 235:
      The ounce, a leopard-like creature, is dreaded for its depredations by the Indians of Brazil.
Translations
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References

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Anagrams

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Middle English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Middle French once, from Old French once, unce, from Latin uncia. Doublet of ynche.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈuːns(ə)/, /ˈuns(ə)/

Noun

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ounce (plural ounces or ounce)

  1. An ounce (unit with much variation, but generally equivalent to 1/12 or 1/16 of a pound)
  2. (rare) A shekel (ancient measure of weight)
  3. (rare) A minuscule or insignificant amount or quantity.
    • a. 1394, Geoffrey Chaucer, “General Prologue”, in The Canterbury Tales‎[1], archived from the original on 22 February 2019, lines 677–678:
      By ounces henge his lokkes that he hadde / And therwith he his shuldres overspradde
      By very little hung the locks that he had; / He draped them over his shoulders
  4. (rare) An eight-minute unit for measuring time.
  5. (rare) A three-inch unit for measuring length.

Descendants

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References

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Norwegian Bokmål

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Etymology

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From English ounce. Doublet of inch and unse.

Noun

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ounce m (definite singular ouncen, indefinite plural ouncer, definite plural ouncene)

  1. an avoirdupois ounce
    Synonym: unse

Norwegian Nynorsk

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Etymology

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From English ounce. Doublet of inch and unse.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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ounce m (definite singular ouncen, indefinite plural ouncar, definite plural ouncane)

  1. an avoirdupois ounce
    Synonym: unse

References

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