kilo

1 of 3

noun

ki·​lo ˈkē-(ˌ)lō 

also

ˈki- 

plural kilos

: a unit of mass or weight equaling one thousand grams or approximately 2.2 pounds : kilogram

Each sack weighs 50 kilos.

Did you know … that it takes a lobster between five and seven years to grow to a weight of half a kilo, the minimum size it should reach before being fished?

—Food & Drink

When he finally strips off the kilos of gold enveloping his body, Deion is as light as a feather.

—Curry Kirkpatrick

Gathering in Versailles, west of Paris, governments are expected on Friday to approve plans to instead use a scientific formulation to define the exact mass of a kilo.

—John Leicester

Kilo

2 of 3

communications code word

—used as a code word for the letter k

kilo-

3 of 3

combining form

: thousand

kiloton

Examples of kilo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

By comparison, the average weight of an NFL lineman is about 140 kilos, or just over 300 pounds. —Stephen Wade, Denver Post, 28 May 2025

Akasha and José negotiated a price of $26 per kilo, including shipping, compared to the $100 per kilo Akasha had been paying his source in Colorado. —Andy Greenberg, Wired News, 22 May 2025

Drug seizures increased from thirty-three kilos to 665,000, and arrests from thirty-one to 7,720. —Stephania Taladrid, New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2025

Healey ordered the shelter inspections after police arrested Leonardo Andujar Sanchez of the Dominican Republic for allegedly possessing five kilos of fentanyl and an assault rifle while staying at an emergency shelter in Revere. —Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald, 25 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Combining form

French, modification of Greek chilioi

First Known Use

Noun

1870, in the meaning defined above

Communications Code Word

1952, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for kilo

• acknow
• aglow
• ago
• airglow
• aloe
• altho
• although
• ammo
• backflow
• backhoe
• banjo
• barbeau

Kids Definition

kilo

1 of 2 noun

ki·​lo ˈkē-(ˌ)lō 

plural kilos

: kilogram

kilo-

2 of 2 combining form

: thousand

kiloton

Etymology

Combining form

derived from Greek chilioi "thousand"