pound
pounds; pounded; pounding
A pound is a unit of measuring mass. Your giant cat, at 16 pounds, may easily outweigh your tiny dog — and whether he does or not, he's definitely the boss.
Pound is one of those words with a dizzying number of meanings. There's the unit North Americans use to measure weight, and there's also the unit of currency in the U.K. that's basically equivalent to U.S. dollars. Egypt, Syria, and Lebanon, among other countries, also have pound currencies. As a verb, pound means "to hit or make a heavy thud," the way you pound a stake in the ground or your heart pounds when you're nervous.
Definitions of pound
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16 ounces avoirdupois“he got a hernia when he tried to lift 100 pounds”
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synonyms:
lb
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type of:
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avoirdupois unit
any of the units of the avoirdupois system of weights
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avoirdupois unit
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a unit of apothecary weight equal to 12 ounces troy
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type of:
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force unit
a unit of measurement of physical force
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force unit
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a nontechnical unit of force equal to the mass of 1 pound with an acceleration of free fall equal to 32 feet/sec/sec
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synonyms:
lbf.
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type of:
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force unit
a unit of measurement of physical force
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force unit
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the basic unit of money in Great Britain and Northern Ireland; equal to 100 pence
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synonyms:
British pound, British pound sterling, pound sterling, quid
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type of:
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British monetary unit
monetary unit in Great Britain
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British monetary unit
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a symbol for a unit of currency (especially for the pound sterling in Great Britain)
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synonyms:
pound sign
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type of:
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symbol
an arbitrary sign (written or printed) that has acquired a conventional significance
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symbol
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the basic unit of money in Syria; equal to 100 piasters
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synonyms:
Syrian pound
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type of:
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Syrian monetary unit
monetary unit in Syria
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Syrian monetary unit
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the basic unit of money in the Sudan; equal to 100 piasters
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synonyms:
Sudanese pound
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type of:
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Sudanese monetary unit
monetary unit in the Sudan
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Sudanese monetary unit
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the basic unit of money in Lebanon; equal to 100 piasters
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synonyms:
Lebanese pound
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type of:
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Lebanese monetary unit
monetary unit in Lebanon
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Lebanese monetary unit
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the basic unit of money in Egypt; equal to 100 piasters
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synonyms:
Egyptian pound
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type of:
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Egyptian monetary unit
monetary unit in Egypt
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Egyptian monetary unit
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the basic unit of money in Cyprus; equal to 100 cents
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synonyms:
Cypriot pound
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type of:
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Cypriot monetary unit
monetary unit in Cyprus
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Cypriot monetary unit
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formerly the basic unit of money in Ireland; equal to 100 pence
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synonyms:
Irish pound, Irish punt, punt
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type of:
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Irish monetary unit
monetary unit in Eire
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Irish monetary unit
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hit hard with the hand, fist, or some heavy instrument
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break down and crush by beating, as with a pestle“pound the roots with a heavy flat stone”
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type of:
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break up, fragment, fragmentise, fragmentize
break or cause to break into pieces
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break up, fragment, fragmentise, fragmentize
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strike or drive against with a heavy impact
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the act of pounding (delivering repeated heavy blows)
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move heavily or clumsily
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move rhythmically
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beat
indicate by beating, as with the fingers or drumsticks
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types:
- show 4 types...
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pulsate, pulse, throb
expand and contract rhythmically; beat rhythmically
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flutter, palpitate
beat rapidly
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thrash
beat so fast that (the heart's) output starts dropping until (it) does not manage to pump out blood at all
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flap
move noisily
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type of:
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move
move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion
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beat
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a public enclosure for stray or unlicensed dogs
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place or shut up in a pound
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shut up or confine in any enclosure or within any bounds or limits
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partition off into compartments“The locks pound the water of the canal”
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synonyms:
pound off
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type of:
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partition, partition off
divide into parts, pieces, or sections
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partition, partition off
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘pound'.
Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors.
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