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quintal

[kwin-tl]
noun
  1. a unit of weight equal to 100 kilograms (220.5 avoirdupois pounds).
  2. hundredweight.
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Origin of quintal

1425–75; late Middle English < Medieval Latin quintāle < Arabic qinṭār weight of a hundred pounds, probably ≪ Latin centēnārius. Cf. centenary, kantar, kilderkin
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for quintal

Historical Examples

  • "'Wouldn't hev your conscience fer a thousand quintal," said Dan.

    "Captains Courageous"

    Rudyard Kipling

  • Pray back a nine-thousand-dollar boat an' a thousand quintal of fish.

    "Captains Courageous"

    Rudyard Kipling

  • You see, we're first off the Banks this season, and it's four twenty-five a quintal.

    "Captains Courageous"

    Rudyard Kipling

  • There isn't but three—no—two ninety-four or five quintal more by my reckoning.

    "Captains Courageous"

    Rudyard Kipling

  • Quintal had probably not intended to hurt the child, but he expressed no regret.

    The Lonely Island

    R.M. Ballantyne

British Dictionary definitions for quintal

quintal

noun
  1. a unit of weight equal to 100 pounds
  2. a unit of weight equal to 100 kilograms
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Word Origin

C15: via Old French from Arabic qintār, possibly from Latin centēnārius consisting of a hundred
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

Word Origin and History for quintal

n.

"a weight of a hundred pounds," c.1400, from Old French quintal "hundredweight," and directly from Medieval Latin quintale, from Arabic quintar, from Late Greek kentenarion, from Latin centenarius "containing a hundred" (see centenary).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper