ton

1
[ tuhn ]
See synonyms for: tontons on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  1. a unit of volume used in transportation by sea, commonly equal to 40 cubic feet (1.13 cu. m) (shipping ton, or measurement ton ).

  2. a unit of internal capacity of ships, equal to 100 cubic feet (2.83 cu. m) (register ton ).

  3. Often tons .Informal. a great quantity; a lot: a ton of jokes;tons of wedding presents.

  4. British Informal. a speed of 100 miles per hour.

Origin of ton

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; variant of tun

Words Nearby ton

Other definitions for ton (2 of 3)

ton2
[ ton, French tawn ]

noun
  1. high fashion; stylishness.

  2. the current fashion, style, or vogue.

  1. the ton, (used with a singular or plural verb) fashionable society.

Origin of ton

2
First recorded in 1760–70; from French, from Latin tonus tone

Other words from ton

  • ton·ish, ton·nish [ton-ish], /ˈtɒn ɪʃ/, adjective
  • ton·ish·ly, ton·nish·ly, adverb
  • ton·ish·ness, ton·nish·ness, noun

Other definitions for -ton (3 of 3)

-ton

  1. a suffix formerly used to form nouns from adjectives: simpleton; singleton.

Origin of -ton

3
Variant of dial. toneone (see tother)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use ton in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ton (1 of 3)

ton1

/ (tʌn) /


noun
  1. Also called: long ton British a unit of weight equal to 2240 pounds or 1016.046909 kilograms

  2. Also called: short ton, net ton US a unit of weight equal to 2000 pounds or 907.184 kilograms

  1. Also called: metric ton, tonne a unit of weight equal to 1000 kilograms

  2. 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

  3. Also called: measurement ton, shipping ton a unit of volume used in shipping freight, equal to 40 cubic feet, irrespective of the commodity shipped

  4. 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

  5. Also called: register ton a unit of internal capacity of ships equal to 100 cubic feet

Origin of ton

1
C14: variant of tun

British Dictionary definitions for ton (2 of 3)

ton2

/ French (tɔ̃) /


noun
  1. style, fashion, or distinction

Origin of ton

2
C18: from French, from Latin tonus tone

British Dictionary definitions for ton (3 of 3)

ton3

/ (tʌn) /


noun
  1. slang, mainly British a score or achievement of a hundred, esp a hundred miles per hour, as on a motorcycle

Origin of ton

3
C20: special use of ton 1 applied to quantities of one 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

Scientific definitions for ton

ton

[ tŭn ]


  1. A unit of weight in the US Customary System equal to 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms). Also called short ton See Table at measurement.

  2. A unit of weight in the US Customary System equal to 2,240 pounds (1,008 kilograms). Also called long ton See Table at measurement.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with ton

ton

see like a ton of bricks.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.