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Glite Dictionary
⚖️ UK weight unit ⚖️ US weight unit
ton

ton

188 1.0
An American measure of weight equal to 2,000 pounds
  • noun
  • /tʌn/
  • Specialized
: tonelada corta (EE. UU.)
  • Based on these studies, they estimated that 64.8 million tons of demolition waste were generated in 1996.
  • million tons
  • 2,000 tons
  • estimated in short tons

Let me lift my five ton bin of cosmetics.

Examples

  • By month's end, you have used three tons of material, and over the year, thirty-seven tons.

    Academic text (1999)

  • We use it to transport very, very heavy pieces of machinery... up to hundreds of tons.

    The China Syndrome (1979)

  • There may be as many as ten tons or as few as six.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • You knocked over three tons of cement dust.

    Elemental (2023)

  • Let me lift my five ton bin of cosmetics.

    Tati

  • And we want 2,000 more tons of barley.

    Kundun (1997)

  • In 1998, Arkansas recycled 836,800 tons, saving more than $23 million in disposal costs.

    Academic text (1999)

  • Dierks estimates that 40,000 tons of trees and brush were collected and processed after the storm.

    Academic text (1999)

  • About 19.5 million tons of waste wood were already being recovered, combusted, or not usable.

    Academic text (1999)

  • The truck was loaded with ten tons of gravel for the construction project.

Synonyms

short ton
vston
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A unit of weight used in the United States equal to 2,000 pounds, about 907 kilograms

is the same unit but often called by a different name
net ton
vston
  • Specialized
4.0

A measure of weight used in the United States equal to 2,000 pounds

is the same unit but usually referred to by the common term

Idioms

a ton of money
  • Informal
68 2.8

A very large amount of money

a ton of bricks
  • Informal
3 5.5

A sudden, very strong feeling that hits someone hard

to hit like a ton of bricks
  • Informal
1 8.0

To feel a sudden strong shock or surprise

Compounds

metric ton
  • Specialized
18 2.7

A weight equal to one thousand kilograms

gross ton
  • Archaic
1 7.2

A British unit of weight equal to 2,240 pounds used in shipping

short ton
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A unit of weight used in the United States equal to 2,000 pounds, about 907 kilograms

bon ton
  • Formal
9.9

A fashionable group of people with polite manners and stylish clothes

a ton of merch
  • Informal
6.9

A large amount of items with a brand, like shirts or posters

foot-ton
  • UK
9.9

A measure of work or energy equal to 2,240 foot-pounds

long ton
  • UK
7.5

A British unit of weight equal to 2,240 pounds

net ton
  • Specialized
4.0

A measure of weight used in the United States equal to 2,000 pounds

ton capacity
  • Specialized
4.2

Maximum weight that a machine can lift safely, measured in tons

won ton
4.1

A Chinese dumpling filled with meat or vegetables and served in clear soup

How Big

gigaton
  • Informal
7.7
ton
  • Specialized
188 1.0
lot
∞ 1.0
amount
∞ 1.0
bit
∞ 1.0
drop
349 1.0
trace
492 3.3

Surface Forms

ton singular
tons plural

Etymology

Ton comes from the old English word tun, meaning a big 'cask' or barrel that held heavy loads. That picture of a heavy barrel became a way to measure weight, and in the United States the amount was later fixed at 2,000 pounds, a little less than the British ton.