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Measurement
Measurements are ways that we tell others
how much of an item we have. There are
two systems of measuring things—English
and Metric. English measurements are used
only in the United States, while metric
measurements are used in nearly every
other country. Measurements are used to
give number values to distance (length,
width, and height), weight, time, volume
(liquid measurements), and temperature.

To get you used to these measurements,

we’re providing a list of commonly used
English and metric measurements, and their
equivalents.

Common English Measures

Distance

Inches (in) 12 in = 1 ft

Feet (ft) 3 ft = 1 yd

1760
Yards (yd) = 1 mi
yd

Miles (mi) 1 mi = 5280 ft

Weight

Ounces (oz) 16 oz = 1 lb

Pounds (lb) 2000 lb = 1 t

Tons (t) 1t = 2000 lb

Volume

Teaspoons (tsp) 3 tsp = 1 tbsp

Tablespoons (tbsp) 1 tbsp = 3 tsp

Fluid ounces (fl oz) 8 fl oz = 1 cup

Cups (c) 2 cups = 1 pt

8 1
Pints (pt) 2pt = 1qt, =
pt gal

Quarts (qt) 4 qt = 1 gal

Gallons (gal) 2 gal = 1 peck

1
Pecks 4 pecks =
bushel

1
Bushels = 4 pecks
bushel

Temperature

Degrees Fahrenheit
(°F)

Speed

Miles per hour (mph)

Common Metric Measures

The metric system is also divided into
different categories of measurement, but it
has a base unit for each category. A base
unit means that that is what the category is
usually (but not always) measured in, and all
the other terms of measurement in that
category are built from the base unit.

Distance

Millimeter (mm) 1000 mm = 1 m

Centimeter (cm) 100 cm =1m

base unit
Meter (m)
(1)

1
Kilometer (km) 1000 m =
km

Weight

Milligrams (mg) 1000 mg =1g

base unit
Grams (g)
(1)

1 1000 1
Kilograms (kg) 1000g = =
kg, kg t

Metric ton (t) 1000 kg =1t

Volume

Milliliters (mL) 1000 mL =1L

base unit
Liters (L)
(1)

Temperature

Degrees Celsius (°C)

Speed

Meters per second

(m/s)

Universal Measures

Time

Seconds (sec) 60 sec = 1 min

Minutes (min) 60 min = 1 hr

Hours (hr) 24 hr = 1 day

Days 7 days = 1 wk

Weeks (wk) (about) 4 wk = 1 mo

Months (mo) 12 mo = 1 yr

Years (yr) 1 yr = 365 days

Decades 1 decade = 10 yr

Centuries 1 century = 100 yr

Millennium 1 millennium = 1000 yr

Metric Prefixes
There are metric prefixes that you should
memorize in order to help you determine
metric measurements. They are, from
smallest to largest:

Nano n 10^-9 0.000000001 1/1000000000

Micro u 10^-6 0.000001 1/1000000

Milli m 10^-3 0.001 1/1000

Centi c 10^-2 0.01 1/100

Deci d 10^-1 0.1 1/10

Base unit - - - -

Deka da 10 10

Hecto h 10^2 100

Kilo k 10^3 1000

Mega M 10^6 1000000

Giga G 10^9 1000000000

Tera T 10^12 1000000000000

Each of these prefixes would go in front of a

base unit. Take, for example, length. The
base unit for length is the meter. However,
we could put a larger prefix, like kilo, in front
of it: kilometer (km). Now, it means 1000
meters, because kilo means 1000. We could
also put a smaller prefix on it, such as
centimeter (cm). Now, it means 1/100 of a
meter, or .01 meter.

You also might notice that all of the metric

prefixes are multiples of 10 (1, 10, 100, 1000,
etc). This makes converting from one to the
other far easier than English measures,
because you are always multiplying or
dividing by 10; remember, multiplying and
dividing by 10 simply involves moving the
decimal.

English to English Conversions

Most often, if you live in the US, you will be
performing English to English conversions
between measurements. Converting
involves multiplying or dividing by a
conversion factor, most of which are listed
above. When you are going from smaller
units to larger units, you would divide, and
when you are going from larger to smaller
units, you multiply.

For example, if you wanted to convert days

to hours, you would first stop and think:
which is larger, a day or an hour? A day is
larger, so you would think, how would one
convert from larger to smaller units? Well, as
we said, larger to smaller units is when you
multiply, so you would multiply by the
conversion factor, which is 24 since there
are 24 hours in 1 day.

The actual problem would look like this:

Convert 3 days to hours.

3 days x 24 hours = 72 hours

We would use 24 hours because are 24

hours per every one day, and right now we
have 3 days that we want to convert to
hours. Converting back would look like the
opposite. For example: Convert 72 hours to
days.

72 hours / 24 hours = 3 days

Here, we used 24 hours again, because we

know there are 24 hours in every 1 day, and
we want to see how many days we’ll have if
we have 72 hours.

Let’s practice this some more. Convert 3

yards into feet.

First, think “which is larger, yards or feet?”

Realize that yards are larger than feet, so

you are converting from larger to smaller.
This indicates multiplication.

Find the conversion factor—3 feet in 1 yard.

Therefore, you’ll be multiplying by 3.

You can set it up like this: 3 yards x 3 feet = 9

feet

We use 3 feet because there are 3 feet in

every yard, and we want to find out how
many feet are in 3 yards. Thus, our final
answer is 9 feet.

When using conversions, you have to make

sure that you are converting to another unit
within the same area. For example, so far we
have converted units of time (days to hours,
and vice versa) and then we converted units
of distance (yards to feet), and this is
normal. There is no way, however, to
convert from days to yards, or from pounds
to degrees Fahrenheit, and so on. If you
start with distance, you must end with
distance; if you start with time, you must
end with time, and so on.

Here are a few problems for you to try.

Convert 4 lbs into ounces.

A. 64 lb

B. 8 oz

C. 16 oz

D. 64 oz

Check Answer

Convert 16 pecks into bushels.

A. 4 pecks

B. 4 bushels

C. 64 pecks

D. 64 bushels

Check Answer

Now, we’re going to show you how to do

harder conversions. Sometimes, the
conversions will not come out evenly, as the
previous ones did. For example, you may
have the following problem:

Convert 2 days and 5 hours into hours.

This simple conversion problem just became

a two step problem. The first step is to
convert the days into hours, as normal. The
second step is to add the converted days to
the already existing hours. So, you would do
the following:

2 days x 24 hours = 48 hours, because you

are converting from larger to smaller, so you
multiply.

48 hours + 5 hours = 53 hours. You add the

two together because the problem gave you
some days and some hours, and asked you
for your answer in hours.

Thus, your final answer is 53 hours.

Let’s try one more harder problem.

Convert 6 days 16 hours and 34 minutes

into minutes.

Once again, this is a 3 step conversion

problem. First, you’ll be converting 6 days
into hours, then into minutes since there is
no direct conversion from days to minutes.
Then, you’ll be converting 16 hours into
minutes. Then you’ll be adding the three
numbers together, in inches, to get your
final answer. The work would look like this:

Determine if you’re working with units that

are being converted from smaller to larger,
or from larger to smaller. You’ll see that in
both cases, days and hours, both are larger
than minutes. Thus, for each conversion,
you will use multiplication as you’re going
from larger to smaller. Here are your
conversions:

6 d x 24 hr = 144 hr
144 hr x 60 min = 8640 min
16 hr x 60 min = 960 min
8640 min + 960 min + 34 min = 9634 min

In the first conversion, we used 24 hours

because there are 24 hours in a day. We had
to convert days to hours before we could
convert hours to minutes. The second
conversion shows the hours from the
previous conversion being changed into
minutes. The third conversion shows the
hours the problem gave being converted
into minutes. The last step shows the three
numbers being added together, resulting in
the grand total of minutes, which amounted
to 9634 minutes.

Now, we’ll have a harder one for you to try.

Convert 4 gallon 3 quarts 1 pints into pints.

A. 16 qt

B. 32 pt

C. 38 pt

D. 39 pt

Check Answer

Metric to Metric Conversions

Metric to metric conversions are less
common—but easier to perform—than
English to English conversions. The metric
system is based on powers of ten, meaning
10, 100, 1000, 10000, 100000 and so on.

The same rules for conversions still apply

when you’re doing metric to metric
conversions as do English to English
conversions. For example, larger to smaller
units still multiply and smaller to larger units
still divide. The only change is in the
conversion units; instead of being random,
now they are all powers of ten.

Let’s try an example of this. Convert 3

meters to centimeters.

First, think: which is larger, a meter or a

centimeter? You would conclude that a
meter is larger than a centimeter. Therefore,
we are going to multiply by the conversion
factor. You would look in the table above for
the conversion factor from m to cm, and see
that there are 100 cm in a m, so you’d be
multiplying by 100.

The actual problem looks like this:

3 m x 100 cm = 300 cm

We would use 100 cm as our conversion

factor, because there are 100 cm in 1 m.
Thus, our final answer is 300 cm.

We’ll do one more before we give you a few

to try on your own. This time, convert 2000
grams into kilograms.

First, think: which is larger, a kilogram or a

gram? You would conclude that a gram is
smaller than a kilogram. Therefore, we are
going to divide by the conversion factor. You
would look in the table above for the
conversion factor from g to kg, and see that
there are 1000 g in a kg, so you’d be dividing
by 1000. Here’s the work:

2000g / 1000g = 2 kg

We use 1000 g because there are 1000

grams in a kilogram. Thus, our final answer
is 2 kg.

Now, you can try one.

Convert 10,000 milliliters to liters.

A. 10 L

B. 100 L

C. 1000 L

D. 1L

Check Answer

English to Metric Conversions

Here is a conversion chart of many of the
common English to metric conversions.
English measures are on the left and metric
measures are on the right.

Distance

1 inch = 2.54 cm

1 foot = 0.3 meters

1 yard = 0.9 meters

1 mile = 1.6 kilometers

Weight

1 ounce = 28.4 grams

1 pound = 0.5 kilograms

Volume

1 teaspoon = 4.9 milliliters

1 cup = 237 milliliters

1 pint = 473 milliliters

1 quart = 0.9 liters

1 gallon = 3.79 liters

Temperature

To convert from degrees C to degrees F

(deg C x 9/5) + 32

To convert from degrees F to degrees C

(deg F – 32) x 5/9

Now let’s practice converting between the

two. Using this chart, if you’re going from
English to metric, you would multiply. If
you’re going from metric to English, you’d
divide.

Here are a few examples:

Convert 4 lbs to kg.

First, you know that you’re going from

English to metric, so you know you’ll be
multiplying. We know that there are .5 kg in
each lb, so we set up our equation like this:

4 lb x .5kg = 2 kg

Thus, 2 kg is our final answer.

Now, let’s practice going from metric to

English.

Convert 200 milliliters to cups.

First, you know that you’re going from

metric to English, so you know you’ll be
dividing. We know that there are 237 mL in
each cup, so we set up our equation like
this:

200 mL / 237 mL = .84 cups

We use 237 mL because there are 237 mL in

a cup. Thus, .84 cups is our final answer.

Notice that we divide when we are moving

from metric to English, we divide; when we
move from English to metric, we multiply.

Now, here is one for you to try:

Convert 3.2 miles to kilometers.

A. 5.12 miles

B. 4.8 miles

C. 4.8 kilometers

D. 5.12 kilometers

Check Answer

Temperature Conversions
Converting from degrees Fahrenheit to
degrees Celsius, and vice versa, involves
using very specific equations, so we’ll show
you how to use them so that you don’t get
confused.

To convert from degrees F to degrees C, you

take (deg F – 32) x 5/9, then you have
degrees Celsius. For example, let’s say we
wanted to convert 32°F into °C. This is what
your set up equation would look like. Our
starting number, 32°F is going to be in blue,
and the rest of the equation is in black.

Now, we have to remember to do the part of

the equation in parentheses first, then we
do the rest. The part in parenthesis is a
subtraction problem, 32 – 32, which equals
0. Now, the equation looks like this:

Normally, we would multiply our whole

number by the fraction, but in this case, our
whole number is 0, and anything times 0 is
0, so we know that our final answer is 0.

Thus, 32°F = 0°C.

Let’s try one more Fahrenheit to Celsius

conversion. This time, we’ll give you the
temperature and you can practice
converting it.

Convert 75°F into °C. Round your answer

to the nearest degree.

Check Answer

Now let’s practice converting from Celsius to

Fahrenheit. It’s similar to what we just did,
but the steps are slightly switched around.
To convert from Celsius, the equation is (°C x
9/5) + 32 = °F. We’re going to solve for the
following: 200°C = ?°F

First, we plug the information into the

equation, which looks like this:

Then, we continue to solve the equation,

making sure to do the parentheses first, and
then the rest of the problem, like this:

Therefore, our final answer is 392°F.

Now, here’s one for you to try.

Convert 50°C into °F.

Check Answer

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