avoirdupois
[ av-er-duh-poiz ]
/ ˌæv ər dəˈpɔɪz /
noun
Informal. bodily weight: He carries around a lot of excess avoirdupois.
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Origin of avoirdupois
1250–1300; Middle English avoir de pois literally, property of weight < Old French, equivalent to avoir (earlier aveir < Latin habēre to have) + de (< Latin dē) + pois (earlier peis < Latin pēnsum)
Words nearby avoirdupois
avoidance, avoidance play, avoidant, avoidant personality, avoir., avoirdupois, avoirdupois weight, avon, avon lake, avouch, avow
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for avoirdupois
British Dictionary definitions for avoirdupois
avoirdupois
avoirdupois weight
/ (ˌævədəˈpɔɪz, ˌævwɑːdjuːˈpwɑː) /
noun
a system of weights used in many English-speaking countries. It is based on the pound, which contains 16 ounces or 7000 grains. 100 pounds (US) or 112 pounds (Brit) is equal to 1 hundredweight and 20 hundredweights equals 1 tonAbbreviation: avdp, avoir
Word Origin for avoirdupois
C14: from Old French aver de peis goods of weight
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Medical definitions for avoirdupois
avoirdupois
[ ăv′ər-də-poiz′ ]
n.
Avoirdupois weight.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.