< The Period

The Period: The Period (#6)

Dennis Oliver

The Period (#6):
Measurements

One very common and important punctuation mark
( . ) looks like a small, dark circle. When this mark is
used with numbers, it's called a point. When it's used
in e-mail and WWW addresses, it's called a dot. In
other situations, it's called a period.

In American English, there are many common uses
for the period. One use is for abbreviations. Here are
some commonly used abbreviations for measurements:

bbl.

doz.

fl. oz.

ft.

gal.

in.

lb.

mi.

min.

oz.

pt.

qt.

sec.

tbsp., T.

tsp., t.

yd.

barrel (of oil, for example)

cup

dozen (12 eggs)

fluid (liquid) ounce

foot

gallon (of gasoline, milk, etc.)

inch

pound

mile

minute

ounce

pint

quart

second

tablespoon

teaspoon

yard

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Special Notes:

1.		The abbreviations above are normally used for both singular and plural forms: 1 bbl. / 100 bbl. 1 gal. / 10 gal. 1 min. / 45 min.

2.		The abbreviation lb. (for pound) is from Latin (librum).

3.		The symbol ' is also used for foot and the symbol " is also used for inches: 12' 4" = 12 feet, four inches 3' 8" = three feet, eight inches

4.		The symbol # is sometimes used for pound: 110# = 110 lb.

5.		In the phrases mpg (miles per gallon) and mph (miles per hour), periods are not used.

The Period: The Period (#6)

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