What does pound mean?
Pound is a common English word with several distinct but familiar meanings. Its principal noun sense is a unit of mass used in the United States and Britain, where one pound equals 16 avoirdupois ounces, or approximately 453.6 grams. The word also names a monetary unit, most notably pound sterling, the currency of the United Kingdom, and may refer to an enclosure holding stray animals. As a verb, pound describes striking or beating repeatedly with force, crushing something into smaller pieces, or moving with heavy, rapid steps. Expressions such as pounds and pence and pound of flesh reflect its long association with weight, money, and measuring value. The verb has vivid physical force: a person may pound on a door, a machine may pound through its work, or a heart may pound with excitement. Pound is therefore useful not merely as a unit of weight, but as a word linking measurement, currency, animal keeping, and forceful action.
A unit of mass equal to 16 avoirdupois ounces; a monetary unit, especially pound sterling; or an enclosure for stray animals.
"The parcel weighed nearly a pound, while the fine came to twenty pounds."
The mass unit is used in British and American English. The British currency is formally called pound sterling, and other countries also use currencies with names such as the Egyptian and Syrian pound.
To strike, beat, crush, or move repeatedly with heavy force.
"He pounded the dough until it became smooth and elastic."
The verb is commonly transitive, taking an object such as a surface, ingredient, or body part. It can also be intransitive to describe heavy movement or rapid beating, as in a heart pounds or someone pounds at the door.
The plural is used for multiple units of mass or currency. Before a mass noun, it indicates separate quantities, as in pounds of flour; for currency, it indicates multiple one-pound units or amounts.
"The bakery sells loaves of bread by the pound and delivers orders of several pounds."
Pound sterling takes its name from silver: the currency originated as a monetary name for a pound of silver.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does pound come from?
The noun pound descends from Old English pund, a unit of weight, and ultimately from Latin pondus, meaning weight or heaviness; the related English words ponder and ponderous preserve the same root. The monetary sense of pound sterling developed from the historical use of a pound of silver as a standard of value and account. The verb has a separate origin, entering Middle English through pounden from Old English pīnan, an inherited verb meaning to pound or crush.
Related word forms
How pound is actually used
The unit of mass is standard in both British and American English. As currency, pound is especially associated with the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries; in informal British usage, quid is a common alternative for one pound sterling. The verb can describe repeated blows, the forceful movement of something heavy, or a person's heart beating rapidly.
Easily confused with pound
A pound is a unit of mass, a currency unit, or a verb meaning to beat or crush, whereas a pond is a body of standing water.