metre
English
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From French mètre, from Ancient Greek μέτρον (métron, “measure, rule, length, size, poetic metre”). Doublet of metron.
Noun
metre (plural metres)
- The basic unit of length in the International System of Units (SI: Système International d'Unités), equal to the distance travelled by light in a vacuum in 1/299 792 458 seconds. The metre is equal to 39 47⁄127 (approximately 39.37) imperial inches.
- 1797, The Monthly magazine and British register, number 3:
- The measures of length above the metre are ten times ... greater than the metre.
- 1873, The Young Englishwoman, April
- A dress length of 8 metres of the best quality costs 58 francs.
- 1928, The Observer, April 15
- The 12-metre yachts ... can be sailed efficiently with four paid hands.
-
Usage notes
- The spelling metre is used by both the International Bureau of Weights and Measures and the International Organization for Standardization in their English-language texts, and is used in all English-speaking countries other than the US. The spelling used in the US is meter- for instance, the US National Institute of Standards and Technology and the United States Government Printing Office Style Manual use meter.
Synonyms
Derived terms
(Metric scale)
Descendants
Translations
|
See also
- Appendix on SI Units
References
“metre”, in Collins English Dictionary.
Further reading
Verb
metre (third-person singular simple present metres, present participle metring, simple past and past participle metred)
Usage notes
The standard spelling of the verb meaning to measure is meter throughout the English-speaking world. The use of the spelling metre for this sense (outside music and poetry) is possibly a misspelling.
Etymology 2
From Old English, from Latin metrum, from Ancient Greek See #Etymology 1.
Noun
metre (plural metres) (Britain, Canada)
- The rhythm or measure in verse and musical composition.
Translations
Catalan
Pronunciation
Derived terms
Etymology 2
From Old Catalan metre, from Latin mittere, present active infinitive of mittō. Compare Occitan metre, French mettre, Spanish meter.
Conjugation
infinitive | metre | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
present participle | metent | ||||||
past participle | masculine | feminine | |||||
singular | mes | mesa | |||||
plural | mesos | meses | |||||
person | singular | plural | |||||
first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
indicative | jo | tu | ell/ella vostè |
nosaltres nós |
vosaltres vós |
ells/elles vostès | |
present | meto | mets | met | metem | meteu | meten | |
imperfect | metia | meties | metia | metíem | metíeu | metien | |
future | metré | metràs | metrà | metrem | metreu | metran | |
preterite | metí | meteres | meté | metérem | metéreu | meteren | |
conditional | metria | metries | metria | metríem | metríeu | metrien | |
subjunctive | jo | tu | ell/ella vostè |
nosaltres nós |
vosaltres vós |
ells/elles vostès | |
present | meti | metis | meti | metem | meteu | metin | |
imperfect | metés | metessis | metés | metéssim | metéssiu | metessin | |
imperative | — | tu | vostè | nosaltres | vosaltres vós |
vostès | |
— | met | meti | metem | meteu | metin |
Further reading
- “metre” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “metre”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2023
- “metre” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “metre” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Occitan
Etymology
From Old Occitan metre, from Latin mittere, present active infinitive of mittō. Attested from the 12th century.[1]
Pronunciation
Audio (Béarn) (file)
Conjugation
This verb needs an inflection-table template.
Derived terms
References
- Diccionari General de la Lenga Occitana, L’Academia occitana – Consistòri del Gai Saber, 2008-2016, page 376.
Old French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈmetɾə/
Conjugation
This verb conjugates as a third-group verb. This verb has irregularities in its conjugation. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.
simple | compound | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
infinitive | metre | avoir mis | |||||
gerund | en metant | Use the gerund of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
present participle | metant | ||||||
past participle | mis | ||||||
person | singular | plural | |||||
first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
indicative | jo | tu | il | nos | vos | il | |
simple tenses |
present | met | mez | met | metons | metez | metent |
imperfect | metoie, meteie | metoies, meteies | metoit, meteit | metiiens, metiens | metiiez, metiez | metoient, meteient | |
preterite | mis | meṣis | mist | meṣimes | meṣistes | misdrent | |
future | metrai | metras | metra | metrons | metroiz, metreiz, metrez | metront | |
conditional | metroie, metreie | metroies, metreies | metroit, metreit | metriiens, metriens | metriiez, metriez | metroient, metreient | |
compound tenses |
present perfect | Use the present tense of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
pluperfect | Use the imperfect tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
past anterior | Use the preterite tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
future perfect | Use the future tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
conditional perfect | Use the conditional tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
subjunctive | que jo | que tu | qu’il | que nos | que vos | qu’il | |
simple tenses |
present | mete | metes | mete | metons | metez | metent |
imperfect | meṣisse | meṣisses | meṣist | meṣissons, meṣissiens | meṣissoiz, meṣissez, meṣissiez | meṣissent | |
compound tenses |
past | Use the present subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
pluperfect | Use the imperfect subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
imperative | – | tu | – | nos | vos | – | |
— | met | — | metons | metez | — |
Turkish

Etymology
From Ottoman Turkish متره (metre), from French mètre.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈmetɾe/