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Weight/Mass | Convert from dram to pound |
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All Weight Conversions Metric Weight Conversions Unit Definition (dram) The dram is a unit of weight in the traditional avoirdupois system, equal to 1/16 ounce or 1/256 pound. One dram equals about 1.7718 gram. The word dram comes from a Latin weight unit, the dragma, and derives ultimately from the Greek drachme, meaning a handful. The word is usually spelled "drachm" in Britain and "dram" in the United States, but both spellings are pronounced "dram." The avoirdupois dram is sometimes abbreviated dr. av. to distinguish it from the apothecaries' dram. Unit Definition (pound) The pound is a traditional unit of mass or weight. The Romans used a pound (the libra pondo, "pound of weight") divided into 12 ounces. All the countries of western Europe used similar units, divided into 12 or 16 ounces, until the advent of the metric system. 12-ounce pounds were common in Italy and southern France, but in Spain and northern Europe 16-ounce pounds became the norm. The word libra is used for this unit in Italy, Spain, and Portugal; in France it is called the livre. Further north, the Latin word pondo ("weight") is the origin of the names of the English pound, Dutch pond, Danish pund, German pfund, and Russian funt. In England, two different "pound" units became standard. The unit now in general use in the United States is the avoirdupois pound, so-called from a French phrase avoir du poids, literally "goods of weight," indicating simply that the goods were being sold by weight rather than by volume or by the piece. The avoirdupois pound is divided into 16 ounces. By international agreement, one avoirdupois pound is equal to exactly 453.592 37 grams; this is exactly 175/144 = 1.215 28 troy pounds.
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