What does drachm mean?
A drachm is a small traditional unit of measurement that once belonged to the apothecaries' system of weights and measures. As a unit of weight, one drachm equals one eighth of an ounce, or sixty grains — roughly 3.9 grams — while as a liquid measure, the fluid drachm represents one eighth of a fluid ounce. The word entered English through Latin from the Greek drakhmē, which originally denoted an ancient coin, and it is closely related to the Greek monetary unit the drachma. Today the term survives mainly in historical, pharmaceutical, and antiquarian contexts, since metric units have long replaced apothecaries' measures in professional practice. Readers most often encounter "drachm" on old prescriptions, in Victorian literature, or on antique measuring instruments. It should not be confused with the more familiar "dram," its avoirdupois counterpart and the usual word for a small serving of whisky, though the two share the same ancient origin.
A unit of weight in the apothecaries' system equal to one eighth of an ounce (60 grains, about 3.89 grams); also a corresponding unit of liquid volume, the fluid drachm.
"The formula specified four drachms of syrup dissolved in water."
Chiefly historical; found in older pharmacopoeias and medical texts.
A small quantity of something, used figuratively or loosely.
"She added not a drachm of sugar to her tea."
The standard plural simply adds -s; older apothecary notation used the symbol ʒ after the numeral.
"The prescription listed six drachms of the tincture."
Before pharmacies went metric, every prescription was measured out in drachms — one eighth of an ounce, straight from an ancient Greek coin.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of drachm
The word "drachm" derives from the Greek drakhmē, the name of an ancient silver coin whose name may relate to a verb meaning "to grasp" or "to handle," possibly referring to a handful of coins. Latin borrowed the term as drachma, which passed into Old French before entering Middle English in the medieval period. The same Greek root produced the modern Greek currency unit the drachma and, by way of Arabic, the dirham still used in several countries today. Its sibling spelling "dram" arose from the same source but came to designate the avoirdupois measure.
Related word forms
How drachm is actually used
"Drachm" is largely archaic today, encountered mainly in historical texts, antique pharmacology, numismatics, and discussions of pre-metric systems of measurement. The spelling "dram" is far more common in everyday English, especially for a measure of whisky. In British historical usage both /dræm/ and /drɑːm/ occur as pronunciations.
Easily confused with drachm
A drachma was the currency unit of Greece until the euro replaced it in 2002, while a drachm is a small unit of weight or liquid volume.
A dram is the avoirdupois weight measure (about 27.3 grains) or a small drink of spirits, whereas a drachm specifically refers to the apothecaries' weight or fluid measure.