What does pound mean?

Definitions for poundpaʊnd

Here are all the possible meanings and translations of the word pound.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. pound, lb(noun)

    16 ounces avoirdupois


  2. British pound, pound, British pound sterling, pound sterling, quid(noun)


  3. pound(noun)

    a unit of apothecary weight equal to 12 ounces troy

  4. Syrian pound, pound(noun)

    the basic unit of money in Syria; equal to 100 piasters

  5. Sudanese pound, pound(noun)


  6. Lebanese pound, pound(noun)

    the basic unit of money in Lebanon; equal to 100 piasters

  7. Irish pound, Irish punt, punt, pound(noun)


  8. Egyptian pound, pound(noun)

    the basic unit of money in Egypt; equal to 100 piasters

  9. Cypriot pound, pound(noun)

    the basic unit of money in Cyprus; equal to 100 cents

  10. pound, lbf.(noun)


  11. Pound, Ezra Pound, Ezra Loomis Pound(noun)


  12. pound, pound sign(noun)


  13. pound, dog pound(noun)

    a public enclosure for stray or unlicensed dogs

    "unlicensed dogs will be taken to the pound"

  14. hammer, pound, hammering, pounding(verb)

    the act of pounding (delivering repeated heavy blows)


  15. thump, pound, poke(verb)

    hit hard with the hand, fist, or some heavy instrument


  16. ram, ram down, pound(verb)

    strike or drive against with a heavy impact


  17. lumber, pound(verb)

    move heavily or clumsily

    "The heavy man lumbered across the room"

  18. beat, pound, thump(verb)

    move rhythmically

    "Her heart was beating fast"

  19. pound, pound off(verb)

    partition off into compartments

    "The locks pound the water of the canal"

  20. pound, pound up(verb)


    "The prisoners are safely pounded"

  21. impound, pound(verb)

    place or shut up in a pound

    "pound the cows so they don't stray"

  22. pound(verb)

    break down and crush by beating, as with a pestle

    "pound the roots with a heavy flat stone"

Webster Dictionary

  1. Pound(verb)

    to strike repeatedly with some heavy instrument; to beat

  2. Pound(verb)


  3. Pound(verb)

    to strike heavy blows; to beat

  4. Pound(verb)

    to make a jarring noise, as in running; as, the engine pounds

  5. Pound(noun)


  6. Pound(noun)

    a level stretch in a canal between locks

  7. Pound(noun)


  8. Pound(verb)

    to confine in, or as in, a pound; to impound

  9. Pound

    of Pound

  10. Pound(noun)

    a certain specified weight; especially, a legal standard consisting of an established number of ounces

  11. Pound(noun)


  12. Origin: [OE. pounen, AS. punian to bruise. Cf. Pun a play on words.]


  1. Pound

    The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement. A number of different definitions have been used, the most common today being the international avoirdupois pound which is legally defined as exactly 0.45359237 kilograms. The unit is descended from the Roman libra; the name pound is a Germanic adaptation of the Latin phrase libra pondo, 'a pound by weight'. Usage of the unqualified term pound reflects the historical conflation of mass and weight. This accounts for the modern distinguishing terms pound-mass and pound-force.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Pound

    pownd, n. long the unit of weight in the western and central states of Europe, differing, however, in value in all of them—a weight of 16 oz. avoirdupois for general goods, the troy-pound of 12 oz. being for bullion (the troy lb. is defined as 5760 grains, of which the lb. avoirdupois contains 7000): the pound sterling, a money of account: a sovereign or 20s., also represented in Scotland by a note (the Pound Scots is 112th of the pound sterling, or 1s. 8d.—of its twenty shillings each is worth an English penny): (Spens.) a balance.—v.t. (slang) to wager a pound on.—ns. Pound′age, a charge or tax made on each pound; Pound′al, a name sometimes used for the absolute foot pound second unit of force, which will produce in one pound a velocity of one foot per second, after acting for one second; Pound′-cake, a sweet cake whose ingredients are measured by weight; Pound′er, he who has, or that which weighs, many pounds—used only after a number, as a 12-pounder.—adj. Pound′-fool′ish, neglecting the care of large sums in attending to little ones. [A.S. pund—L. pondo, by weight, pondus, a weight—pendĕre, to weigh.]

  2. Pound

    pownd, v.t. to shut up or confine, as strayed animals.—n. an enclosure in which strayed animals are confined: a level part of a canal between two locks: a pound-net.—ns. Pound′age, a charge made for pounding stray cattle; Pound′-keep′er; Pound′-net, a kind of weir in fishing, forming a trap by an arrangement of nets (the wings, leader, and pocket, bowl, or pound). [A.S. pund, enclosure.]

  3. Pound

    pownd, v.t. to beat into fine pieces: to bruise: to bray with a pestle.—v.i. to walk with heavy steps.—n. Pound′er. [M. E. pounen—A.S. punian, to beat; -d excrescent.]

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'pound' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #3419

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'pound' in Written Corpus Frequency: #308

  3. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'pound' in Nouns Frequency: #205


  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of pound in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of pound in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Sample Sentences & Example Usage

  1. Robert Burton:

    Penny wise, pound foolish.

  2. Muhammad Ali:


  3. Charles Dickens:


  4. Unknown:


  5. Joe Leask:

    We started out diving for 25 cents an urchin. When I got 35 cents a pound, I thought I was going to get rich. Then, it hit a dollar a pound and we all celebrated -- and then it hit $2 a pound.

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Translations for pound

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"pound." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2017. Web. 22 Jul 2017. <http://www.definitions.net/definition/pound>.

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