metric ton
18
2.7
- noun
- /ˈmɛtrɪk tʌn/
- Specialized
:
tonelada
- The factory produces more than 10 metric tons of steel each day.
- million metric tons
- 2.6 million metric tons
- metric tons of hazardous waste
And they generally have an excess of one metric ton of cocaine on on these vessels, which it's worth a lot of money.
- And they generally have an excess of one metric ton of cocaine on on these vessels, which it's worth a lot of money.
Examples
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There are almost 4 metric tons of rock blocking our way.
-
Only a small amount, estimated to be about 800 metric tons per year, is available.
Blog text (28) -
The capacity of the system is only 2,000 metric tons per year.
Academic text (1999) -
Well, 100 metric tons of space debris usually land on the Earth every year.
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Residential paper recovery increased to 476,000 metric tons, an 11 percent jump.
Academic text (1999) -
Every year, the United States produces at least 236 million metric tons of hazardous waste.
Academic text (1993) -
In 1995, it took in a total of 30,000 metric tons of six types of recyclables.
Academic text (1999) -
In 2008, inland capture fisheries produced an estimated 10 million metric tons of fish and crustaceans.
Academic text (2011) -
The 2010 pollock catch quota of 800,000 metric tons was down from 1.3 million just two years ago.
Academic text (2011) -
In October, Moi announced that 200,000 metric tons of maize would be imported.
Academic text (1994)
Synonyms
15
2.4
A unit of weight equal to 1,000 kilograms
10
6.3
A unit of weight that equals 1,000 kilograms
1
3.9
A short form for metric ton meaning a weight of 1,000 kilograms
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is compositional: 'metric' (relating to the metric system) modifies 'ton'/'tonne' (a large unit of mass), so a learner who knows both parts can infer it means a ton defined by the metric system (1,000 kg). This pattern is cross-linguistically regular and follows straightforward noun modification, so its meaning is immediately recoverable to B1 learners (aside from potential confusion over different 'ton' variants).
Etymology
The term metric ton comes from joining metric, the modern system of measurement, and ton, a name for a large weight. So today metric ton means 'a unit of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms'.