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Metric and Imperial

Difference Between Metric and Imperial

Posted on May 3, 2023 by adnan

Metric and Imperial systems the main difference are that metric units are based on 10, 100, 1,000, 1/10, or 1/100. Imperial measurements began with 1/2s, 1/4s and 1/8s. However, there are some outliers such as 12 inches per foot.

We will do a detailed comparison of the imperial and metric measurement systems, or, as some people say with justification, Metric vs English system.

In the United States, we mostly use the imperial system of measurement while the majority of the rest uses the metric system. However, metric measurements are increasingly common in scientific applications, recipes, and food labels. This increased usage requires the ability to convert between both systems.

Table of Contents

  • What is the Metric System of measurement?
    • What is the origin of the metric system?
    • What is the working of the metric system?
    • Common Metric Measurements
  • What is the Imperial system?
    • What is the origin of the imperial system?
    • What is the system of imperialism?
  • What is the difference between the British and American imperial systems?
    • Common Imperial Measurements
  • What is the difference between Imperial and Metric systems?
    • Conversion Charts for Metric and Imperial
    • At the end of the tropic

What is the Metric System of measurement?

The metric system is used in almost all countries.

What is the origin of the metric system?

After the French Revolution (1789-1793), the French introduced us to the metric system. The French wanted to get rid of everything related to monarchy. The French people didn’t stop at removing the heads of the kings and queens. They also threw away the old system and replaced it with the metric system, which is based on decimals and 10s. By 1795, metric measurements were standardized across Europe.

What is the working of the metric system?

The kilogram is used for mass and the meter for measurement. The units are 10, 100, 1,000, 1/10 1/100 1/1000. This makes it easy to divide!

Common Metric Measurements

The list is short, because conversions between the metric and imperial systems are simple!

  • One kilogram is 1000 grams.
  • One gram is 1000 milligrams
  • One liter is 1000 milliliters
  • One kilometer is 1000 meters.

What is the Imperial system?

The USA remained steadfast and is one of only three countries that use imperial measures. Myanmar and Liberia are the other two.

What is the origin of the imperial system?

Can anything make any less sense? How many feet are there in a mile of 5,280? Who would have thought that up? The Roman Army. The Latin word “mille pasus” means 1,000 paces. A mile is the distance a Roman soldier would have marched if he had 1,000 paces. A foot was measured by his sandaled feet.

What is the system of imperialism?

Imperial measurements are based on 1/2s and 1/4s. However, there are some outliers such as 12 inches per foot. It’s an old system, but it makes sense when you think about it. In ancient Rome, everything was measured by 1/2s, 1/4s and 1/8s. It may seem strange to us today, as decimal-based metric measurements are so easy, but 1/4 of a gallon was a common measurement in ancient Rome. A quart was easily measured. Divide a container in half and then again by half to get a 1/4. It was a simple and accurate way to measure everything.

What is the difference between the British and American imperial systems?

The United Kingdom uses old measurements because it is convenient for them. British beer is still measured in pints. However, the pint in Britain is 20 oz, compared to 16 oz in the US. They also like to measure their weights in stones. A stone being 14 lbs. As we have shown in our conversions, a Canadian or UK Imperial Gallon will be 20% larger than a US gallon.

Common Imperial Measurements

The imperial system is more difficult to convert quickly than the metric system. Some common imperial conversions for volume measurements are:

  • Three teaspoons equals one tablespoon
  • 16 tablespoons per cup
  • Two cups in one pint
  • Two pints equal one quart
  • Four cups in one quart
  • 16 cups per gallon

It’s also handy to know how to convert imperial volume to imperial weight.

  • 8 ounces per cup
  • 16 ounces is 1 pint
  • 32 ounces per quart
  • 1 Gallon = 128 Ounces

What is the difference between Imperial and Metric systems?

Both the metric and imperial systems are systems of measurements. They are not one unit, but a system of interrelated units that includes many different measurements, such as length, area, mass, force, energy and power, time, temperature and luminosity.

The two systems differ in nearly all the units (meters, feet, kilograms, pounds, etc.). They do share the units for measuring time (seconds minutes and hours) as well as electricity (volts amperes watts ohms etc.). The time system is not decimalized, and the electricity system is more recent than either Metric or Imperial.

Conversion Charts for Metric and Imperial

It can be difficult to remember the metric to imperial converters. This chart contains the most important metric to imperial conversions that you will need when cooking.

 

 LENGTH

Metric US or Imperial
1 millimeter

[mm]

0.03937 in
1 centimeter [cm] 10 mm 0.3937 in
1 meter [m] 100 cm 1.0936 yd
1 kilometer [km] 1000 m 0.6214 mile
US or Imperial Metric
1 inch [in] 2.54 cm
1 foot [ft] 12 in 0.3048 m
1 yard [yd] 3 ft 0.9144 m
1 mile 1760 yd 1.6093 km
1 int nautical mile 2025.4 yd 1.853 km

AREA

Metric US or Imperial
1 sq cm [cm2] 100 mm2 0.1550 in2
1 sq m [m2] 10,000 cm2 1.1960 yd2
1 hectare [ha] 10,000 m2 2.4711 acres
1 sq km [km2] 100 ha 0.3861 mile2
US or Imperial Metric
1 sq inch [in2] 6.4516 cm2
1 sq foot [ft2] 144 in2 0.0929 m2
1 sq yd [yd2] 9 ft2 0.8361 m2
1 acre 4840 yd2 4046.9 m2
1 sq mile [mile2] 640 acres 2.59 km2

  VOLUME

Metric US Measure Imperial
1 cu cm [cm3] 0.0610 in3
1 cu decimeter [dm3] 1,000 cm3 0.0353 ft3
1 cu meter [m3] 1,000 dm3 1.3080 yd3
1 liter [l] 1 dm3 2.113 fluid pt 1.7598 pt
US Measure Imperial Metric
1 cu inch [in3] 16.387 cm3
1 cu foot [ft3] 0.02832 m3
1 fluid ounce 1.0408 UK fl oz 29.574 ml
1 pint (16 fl oz) 0.8327 UK pt 0.4732 liters
1 gallon (231 in3) 0.8327 UK gal 3.7854 liters

  MASS

Metric US or Imperial
1 milligram [mg] 0.0154 grain
1 gram [g] 1,000 mg 0.0353 oz
1 kilogram [kg] 1,000 g 2.2046 lb
1 tonne [t] 1,000 kg 1.1023 short ton
1 tonne [t] 1,000 kg 0.9842 long ton
US or Imperial Metric
1 ounce [oz] 437.5 grain 28.35 g
1 pound [lb] 16 oz 0.4536 kg
1 stone 14 lb 6.3503 kg
1 hundredweight [cwt] 112 lb 50.802 kg
1 short ton (US) 0.9072 t
1 long ton (UK) 1.0160 t

At the end of the tropic

The Imperial System of Measurement, and the Metric System of Measurement are the two main systems used to measure distances and weigh. The Metric System is used by most countries. It uses units like meters and grams, and prefixes such as kilo and milli to indicate the order of magnitude. In the United States people still use the old Imperial system where everything is measured in feet and inches.

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