There are a number of different systems of measurement. Here we will look at the two most common, the
English system and the Metric system.
The English System
The units of measurement in the English system are:
Length/Area
1 foot (ft) = 12 inches (in)
1 yard (yd) = 3 feet
1 mile (mi) = 1,760 yards
1 square foot (sq ft) = 144 square inches (sq in)
1 square yard (sq yd) = 9 square feet
1 acre = 4,840 square yards = 43,560 square feet
1 square mile (sq mi) = 640 acres
Capacity
1 tablespoon (T) = 3 teaspoons (t)
1 cup (c) = 16 tablespoons
1 pint (pt) = 2 cups
1 quart (qt) = 2 pints
1 gallon (gal) = 4 quarts
Weight
16 ounces (oz) = 1 pound (lb)
1 ton = 2,000 pounds
The Metric System
The units of measurement in the metric system are:
Length
1 millimeter (mm) = 0.001 meters (m)
1 centimeter (cm) = 0.01 m
1 decimeter (dm) = 0.1 m
1 meter (m) = 1 m
1 decameter (dam) = 10 m
1 hectometer (hm) = 100 m
1 kilometer (km) = 1,000 m
Capacity
1 milliliter (ml) = 0.001 liters (l)
1 centiliter (cl) = 0.01 l
1 deciliter (dl) = 0.1 l
1 liter (l) = 1 l
1 decaliter (dal) = 10 l
1 hectoliter (hl) = 100 l
1 kiloliter (kl) = 1,000 l
Weight
1 milligram (mg) = 0.001 grams (g)
1 centigram (cg) = 0.01 g
1 decigram (dg) = 0.1 g
1 gram (g) = 1 g
1 decagram (dag) = 10 g
1 hectogram (hg) = 100 g
1 kilogram (kg) = 1,000 g
Converting Measurements
We can convert measurements from one unit to another unit within the same system
(English or Metric) or between the two systems. Let's say a piece of land is 2.3 square
miles, but the contractor needs to know the area in acres. How would he convert
the measurement?
To convert measurements, it is necessary to know conversion factors between
measurements. A conversion factor is a clever way of writing 1 as a fraction in which the
numerator is equal to the denominator but the numerator and the denominator have
different units. For example, (1,000 m)/(1 km) is a conversion factor because
1,000 m = 1 km. (1 ft)/(12 in) is a conversion factor because 1 ft = 12 in.
An important fact to remember is that when fractions are multiplied, numbers in the
numerator and numbers in the denominator cancel out, as shown in
Fractions. Also, units in the numerator and
the denominator cancel out: if a unit appears in both the numerator and the denominator,
we can cross both units out. For example:
×
= 
×
= 5, 000 m
