Definition of CUBIT

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The cubit is an ancient unit of length that may have originated in Egypt close to 5,000 years ago. Cubit can refer to various units used in the ancient world, the actual length of which varied from time to time and place to place, but which was generally equivalent to the length of the human arm from elbow to fingertip-roughly about a foot and a half. (Appropriately, the word's source is a Latin word meaning "elbow.") Starting with the Wycliffe Bible in 1382, cubit has been used as the English translation for the measurement known in Biblical Hebrew as the ammah and in Koine as the péchus.

Examples of cubit in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web And which of you, by being anxious, can add one cubit unto the measure of his life? — Bob Odenkirk, The New Yorker, "A Biblical Rough Draft," 28 Oct. 2019 The palace that Maya built consisted of columns of gold, and occupied an area of five thousand cubits. — Girish Shahane, Quartz India, "The Amazon fires have a 3,000-year-old parallel in the Indian epic Mahabharata," 30 Aug. 2019 These towers were said to be 60 cubits (90 feet) tall and covered with skins which were treated in vinegar, mud, and fire-resistant substances. — William Gurstelle, Popular Mechanics, "How to Storm a Castle," 11 Apr. 2019 The English from at least medieval times have hewed to their own measurements—cubits, stones, miles, acres—some of which are still used in America. — Jenny Gross, WSJ, "English Vigilantes Use Ladders, Sticky Letters to Exterminate the Metric System," 23 Oct. 2017 Cubit cut his ditch through a natural levee, formed by the pileup of sediment on the river's bank. — Tristan Baurick, NOLA.com, "Old accident in Mississippi Delta holds lessons for saving Louisiana's coast," 25 Aug. 2017 These towers were said to be 60 cubits (90 feet) tall and covered with skins which were treated in vinegar, mud, and fire-resistant substances. — William Gurstelle, Popular Mechanics, "How to Storm a Castle," 10 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'cubit.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.