Ton
/tʌn/noun
A unit of weight equal to 2,000 pounds in the U.S. customary system or 2,240 pounds in the British imperial system.
Did you know?The English unit ton ultimately comes from the same Latin source as words for large barrels and containers, because weight was historically measured by what a cask could hold.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
tunne
“A large cask or barrel”
Middle English
ME
tonne
“A large cask; later, a weight based on a cask’s capacity”
Late Latin
LL
tunna
“A cask or barrel”
Modern English
English
ton
“A unit of weight or capacity”