pennyweight

American

[pen-ee-weyt] / ˈpɛn iˌweɪt /

noun

(in troy weight) a unit of 24 grains or 1/20 of an ounce (1.56 grams). dwt, pwt

pennyweight British

/ ˈpɛnɪˌweɪt /

noun

a unit of weight equal to 24 grains or one twentieth of an ounce (Troy)

"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

Etymology

Origin of pennyweight

1350–1400; Middle English penyweight, Old English penega gewihte. See penny, weight

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.

Two measures are used by jewelers to determine this — karat and pennyweight.

From Encyclopedia.com • Apr. 9, 2018

If you have a piece of jewelry and would like to determine the pennyweight of gold, follow this guide.

From Encyclopedia.com • Apr. 9, 2018

This gives you the current pennyweight value of gold.

From Encyclopedia.com • Apr. 9, 2018

A professor he has been, but there is not a pennyweight of perplexity in him.

From Time Magazine Archive

The Queen’s has been penetrated 100 feet, lode 30 inches, and assay 18 pennyweight.

From Through South Africa His Visit to Rhodesia, the Transvaal, Cape Colony, Natal by Stanley, Henry M. (Henry Morton)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023