Carat
/ˈkær.ət/noun
A unit of mass used for gemstones and pearls, equal to 200 milligrams.
Did you know?Carat ultimately traces back to the Greek word for the carob seed, which was used as a traditional weight standard because its seeds were thought to be unusually uniform.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
kerátion
“carob seed; little horn”
Late Latin
Latin
carratus / caratus
“carob seed used as a weight”
Arabic
Arabic
qīrāṭ
“a small unit of weight; carob seed”
Old French
Old French
carat
“a unit of weight for precious stones”
Modern English
English
carat
“a unit of mass for gemstones and pearls”