What does meng mean?
A meng is a traditional unit of weight used in Malaysia and Singapore, especially for rice, grain, and other agricultural commodities. It belongs to a system of Chinese-derived trade measures and was historically useful in marketplaces where quantities of bulk goods needed to be checked by weight. The unit is not widely used in modern English, so the word is most often encountered in descriptions of Malaysian or Singaporean culture, older commercial records, and the history of regional trade. Today, standard metric measures generally replace it in ordinary commerce. Knowing “meng” is useful chiefly because it illustrates how local vocabulary preserves older trading practices and the influence of Chinese measurement systems on Southeast Asian commerce. In its conventional setting, the word is a noun and is normally used in expressions such as “weighed in meng.”
nounA traditional Malaysian and Singaporean unit of weight equal to one twentieth of a Chinese picul, traditionally used for measuring rice and other agricultural goods.
- A traditional Malaysian and Singaporean unit of weight, historically used especially for rice and other commodities.
"The merchant weighed the rice in several meng before recording the sale."
"The rice merchant measured the shipment in meng."
"She bought a small meng of glutinous rice at the market."
The unit is normally used in the singular and is generally unchanged when pluralized.
"The trader weighed out five meng of rice."
A meng links the trading world of Southeast Asia with a weight once used for shipping and selling rice in larger Chinese-style measures.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does meng come from?
The term comes through English from Malay meng, a traditional weight measure used in the Malay world. It is associated with the Chinese picul, also historically called a min, and with a wider Southeast Asian system of market weights shaped by regional trade. The precise history of its spread and standardization is not entirely simple, but its longstanding use in Malaysia and Singapore is well established.
How meng is actually used
The term is chiefly associated with Malaysia and Singapore and is now largely traditional or historical. Its spelling and use are distinct from the similarly sounding “mang,” which appears in various names and other words.
Easily confused with meng
“Mang” is a general spelling used in various names and words, whereas “meng” is the traditional Malaysian and Singaporean weight unit.