pound

pound¹

—pounder, n.

/pownd/, v.t.

1. to strike repeatedly with great force, as with an instrument, the fist, heavy missiles, etc.

2. to produce or effect by striking or thumping, or in a manner resembling this (often fol. by out): to pound out a tune on the piano.

3. to force (a way) by battering; batter (often fol. by down): He pounded his way through the mob. He pounded the door down.

4. to crush into a powder or paste by beating repeatedly.

v.i.

5. to strike heavy blows repeatedly: to pound on a door.

6. to beat or throb violently, as the heart.

7. to give forth a thumping sound: The drums pounded loudly.

8. to walk or go with heavy steps; move along with force or vigor.

n.

9. the act of pounding.

10. a heavy or forcible blow.

11. a thump.

[bef. 1000; ME pounen, OE punian; akin to D puin rubbish]

Syn. 1. See beat.

pound²

/pownd/, n., pl. pounds, (collectively) pound.

1. a unit of weight and of mass, varying in different periods and countries.

2. -

a. (in English-speaking countries) an avoirdupois unit of weight equal to 7000 grains, divided into 16 ounces (0.453 kg), used for ordinary commerce. Abbr.: lb., lb. av.

b. a troy unit of weight, in the U.S. and formerly in Britain, equal to 5760 grains, divided into 12 ounces (0.373 kg), used for gold, silver, and other precious metals. Abbr.: lb. t.

c. (in the U.S.) an apothecaries' unit of weight equal to 5760 grains, divided into 12 ounces (0.373 kg). Abbr.: lb. ap.

3. Also called pound sterling. a paper money, nickel-brass coin, and monetary unit of the United Kingdom formerly equal to 20 shillings or 240 pence: equal to 100 new pence after decimalization in Feb. 1971. Abbr.: L; Symbol: £

4. Also called pound Scots. a former Scottish money of account, originally equal to the pound sterling but equal to only a twelfth of the pound sterling at the union of the crowns of England and Scotland in 1603.

5. any of the monetary units of various countries, as Cyprus, Egypt, Ireland, Lebanon, Sudan, Syria, and of certain Commonwealth of Nations countries.

6. (formerly) the Turkish lira.

7. a former monetary unit of Israel, Libya, and Nigeria.

8. pounds, CB Slang. a meter reading in units of five decibels: used as a measure of loudness for incoming signals.

[bef. 900; ME; OE pund (c. D pond, G Pfund, Goth, ON pund) L pondo pound (indeclinable n.), orig. abl. of pondus weight (see PONDER) in the phrase libra pondo a pound by weight; see LIBRA¹]

pound³

/pownd/, n.

1. an enclosure maintained by public authorities for confining stray or homeless animals.

2. an enclosure for sheltering, keeping, confining, or trapping animals.

3. an enclosure or trap for fish.

4. a place of confinement or imprisonment.

5. a place or area where cars or other vehicles are impounded, as those towed away for being illegally parked.

6. reach (def. 26).

v.t.

7. Archaic. to shut up in or as in a pound; impound; imprison.

[1350-1400; ME poond; cf. late OE pund- in pundfald PINFOLD; akin to POND]

* * *

Unit of weight in the avoirdupois system, the traditional European system of weight (incorporated into the British Imperial system and the U.S. system of weights and measures), equal to 16 oz, 7,000 grains, or 0.

4536 kg. It is also a unit of weight in the troy and apothecaries' systems (two other traditional systems of weight), equal to 12 troy or apothecaries' oz, 5,760 grains, or 0.37 kg. Its Roman ancestor, the libra, is the source of the abbreviation lb. The troy pound is used for precious metals, the apothecaries' pound for drugs. The British monetary pound is linked historically with the minting of silver coins (sterlings). Large payments were reckoned in "pounds of sterlings," later shortened to "pounds sterling." See also gram; International System of Units; measurement; metric system; ounce.

* * *

▪ unit of weight

      unit of avoirdupois weight, equal to 16 ounces, 7,000 grains, or 0.4536 kg, and of troy (troy weight) and apothecaries' weight, equal to 12 ounces, 5,760 grains, or 0.37 kg. The Roman ancestor of the modern pound, the libra, is the source of the abbreviation lb. In medieval England several derivations of the libra vied for general acceptance. Among the earliest of these, the Tower pound, so called because its standard was kept in the Royal Mint in the Tower of London (London, Tower of), was applied to precious metals and drugs and contained 5,400 grains, or 0.350 kg, while the mercantile pound contained 6,750 grains, or 0.437 kg. The troy pound, believed to have originated in Troyes, France, superseded the lighter Tower pound in 1527 as the gold and silver standard. Increased trade with France led also to the adoption of the 16-ounce avoirdupois pound in the 16th century to replace the mercantile pound.

      The British monetary pound (pound sterling) is historically linked with the minting of silver coins (sterlings) from the Tower pound. Large payments were reckoned in “pounds of sterlings,” later shortened to “pounds sterling.”

* * *