ton
1 Americannoun
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a unit of weight, equivalent to 2000 pounds (0.907 metric ton) avoirdupois short ton, or net ton in the United States and 2240 pounds (1.016 metric tons) avoirdupois long ton in Great Britain.
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Also called freight ton. a unit of volume for freight that weighs one ton, varying with the type of freight measured, as 40 cubic feet of oak timber or 20 bushels of wheat.
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a unit of volume used in transportation by sea, commonly equal to 40 cubic feet (1.13 cu. m) shipping ton, or measurement ton.
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a unit of internal capacity of ships, equal to 100 cubic feet (2.83 cu. m) register ton.
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Informal. Often tons a great quantity; a lot.
a ton of jokes;
tons of wedding presents.
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British Informal. a speed of 100 miles per hour.
noun
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high fashion; stylishness.
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the current fashion, style, or vogue.
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(used with a singular or plural verb) the ton, fashionable society.
noun
noun
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Also called: long ton. a unit of weight equal to 2240 pounds or 1016.046909 kilograms
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Also called: short ton. net ton. a unit of weight equal to 2000 pounds or 907.184 kilograms
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Also called: metric ton. tonne. a unit of weight equal to 1000 kilograms
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Also called: freight ton. a unit of volume or weight used for charging or measuring freight in shipping. It depends on the type of material being shipped but is often taken as 40 cubic feet, 1 cubic metre, or 1000 kilograms
freight is charged at £40 per ton of 1 cubic metre
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Also called: measurement ton. shipping ton. a unit of volume used in shipping freight, equal to 40 cubic feet, irrespective of the commodity shipped
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Also called: displacement ton. a unit used for measuring the displacement of a ship, equal to 35 cubic feet of sea water or 2240 pounds
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Also called: register ton. a unit of internal capacity of ships equal to 100 cubic feet
noun
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A unit of weight in the US Customary System equal to 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms).
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Also called short ton
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See Table at measurement
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A unit of weight in the US Customary System equal to 2,240 pounds (1,008 kilograms).
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Also called long ton
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See Table at measurement
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See metric ton
Other Word Forms
- tonish adjective
- tonishly adverb
- tonishness noun
- tonnish adjective
- tonnishly adverb
- tonnishness noun
Etymology
Origin of ton1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; variant of tun
Origin of ton2
First recorded in 1760–70; from French, from Latin tonus tone
Origin of -ton3
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A second group was told that MTV denied the overly dramatic label and said their shows get a ton of positive reviews.
“You have tons of people doing the same thing and being on the same accord for that one athlete,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times
The biggest power plant in Texas, WA Parish near Thompsons, Texas, emitted 49% more sulfur dioxide last year, or 36,000 tons—more than all but six states that year, according to NRDC’s analysis.
“John’s alive for about 10 pages of the book and then there’s a time jump, so we’re not spending a ton of time in what her immediate grief feels like,” Brownell adds.
From Los Angeles Times
The brokerage sets palm oil’s support and resistance levels at 4,020 ringgit and 4,145 ringgit a ton, respectively.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
