ton

ton
\ \ [14] Ton originated as a variant of tun ‘barrel’ [OE]. At first it was used for a unit of capacity, equal to the space occupied by a tun of wine, but by the end of the 15th century we find it being applied to a unit of weight. Tun itself was acquired from medieval Latin tunna, which was probably of Gaulish origin. Another of its descendants was Old French tonne, whose diminutive tonel was borrowed into English as tunnel [15]. This was originally used for a ‘tubular net for catching birds’, and then for a ‘chimney flue’ or ‘funnel’. It was not applied to an ‘underground passage’ until as recently as the late 18th century.
\ \ Cf.⇒ TUN, TUNNEL

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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Synonyms:
, , / , , / / (round), (square) / /


Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ton- — Ton …   Deutsch Wörterbuch

  • Ton — Ton …   Deutsch Wörterbuch

  • ton — 1. (ton ; devant une voyelle et une h muette : to n ami, to n homme) au masculin ; TA (ta) au féminin ; TES (tê, l s se lie : têz amis) au pluriel pour les deux genres. 1°   Adj. possessif qui répond au pronom personnel tu, toi. Ton ami, ta femme …   Dictionnaire de la Langue Française d'Émile Littré

  • ton — tȏn m <N mn tónovi> DEFINICIJA 1. a. fiz. zvuk koji nastaje pravilnim titranjem elastičnog tijela i u kojem se razlikuju visina, jačina, boja i trajanje b. karakteristična kvaliteta i boja nekog glazbala ili ljudskog glasa [raspjevani ton… …   Hrvatski jezični portal

  • ton — I {{/stl 13}}{{stl 8}}rz. mnż I, D. u, Mc. tonnie {{/stl 8}}{{stl 20}} {{/stl 20}}{{stl 12}}1. {{/stl 12}}{{stl 8}}fiz. muz. {{/stl 8}}{{stl 7}} dźwięk towarzyszący drganiom akustycznym o tej samej częstotliwości : {{/stl 7}}{{stl 10}}Tony… …   Langenscheidt Polski wyjaśnień

  • ton — ton1 or displacement ton [tun] n. pl. tons; sometimes, after a number,ton [var. (differentiated (17th c.) for senses “weight, measure”) of TUN] 1. a unit of weight, equal to 2,000 pounds avoirdupois (907.1847 kilograms or 0.90718 metric ton or… …   English World dictionary

  • ton — [ tʌn ] noun count ** 1. ) AMERICAN a unit for measuring weight, containing 2,000 POUNDS and equal to 907 kilograms: The horse could pull up to 50 tons. Transporting the coal costs $40 per ton. two ton/80 ton etc. (=weighing two tons/80 tons… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • Ton — (t[u^]n), n. [OE. tonne, tunne, a tun, {AS}. tunne a tun, tub, a large vessel; akin to G. & F. tonne a ton, tun, LL. tunna a tun; all perhaps of Celtic origin; cf. Ir. & Gael. tunna a tun. Cf. {Tun},{Tunnel}.] (Com.) A measure of weight or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Ton — Ton …   Wikipedia Español

  • Tôň — (Village) Administration Pays  Slovaquie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • ton — S3 [tʌn] n [Date: 1200 1300; Origin: tun container, unit of weight (11 21 centuries), from Old English tunne] 1.) plural tons or ton written abbreviation t a unit for measuring weight, equal to 2240 pou …   Dictionary of contemporary English

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