measurement

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noun mea·sure·ment \ˈme-zhər-mənt, ˈmā-\

Definition of measurement

1 : the act or process of measuring
2 : a figure, extent, or amount obtained by measuring : dimension
3 : measure 2b

See measurement defined for English-language learners

See measurement defined for kids

Examples of measurement in a Sentence

The test is for the measurement of a student's progress.
The instruments provide accurate measurement of atmospheric conditions.
The room's measurements are 30 by 15 feet.
The instruments are used for taking measurements of atmospheric conditions.
Accurate measurements are required in carpentry.
The tailor took his measurements, and his waist measurement is 36 inches.

Recent Examples of measurement from the Web

If KATRIN falls short of a definitive measurement and neither of the new approaches pans out, then directly weighing the neutrino could remain an unreachable goal.

— adrian cho, Science | AAAS, "Weighing the universe's most elusive particle", 29 June 2017
The AP also calculated efficiency gap scores for the U.S. House elections, although experts caution that those measurements are less statistically meaningful in states with few districts.

— david a. lieb, The Seattle Times, "AP analysis shows how gerrymandering benefited GOP in 2016", 25 June 2017
Using LED lights to monitor blood movement, trackers can gauge heart rate, a relatively simple measurement.

— tim newcomb, Popular Mechanics, "The Elliptical Machine Is Lying to You", 22 June 2017
At the heart of that shift were biometrics: precise, digitized measurements of immigrants’ bodies.

— alvaro m. bedoya, The Atlantic, "Deportation Is Going High-Tech Under Trump", 21 June 2017
Lee takes measurements of the client, and helps to select a suit pattern, material, thread, buttons, and accessories.

— special to al.com, AL.com, "Master tailor dressing Huntsville's best for 33 years", 16 June 2017
According to measurements dating to 1950, the 30-year mean maximum dead zone volume is 1.74 cubic miles.

— Washington Post, "Chesapeake Bay’s summer ‘dead zone’ may grow larger, scientists say", 14 June 2017
In some traditional air pollution measurements, the United States is cleaner than most nations, said William K. Reilly, who headed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under Republican President George H.W. Bush.

— seth borenstein, The Seattle Times, "Facts muddy Trump’s claim that US is cleanest country", 3 June 2017
With a little bit of overlap between the two runs, and a little bit of luck, the two detectors just might be able to see the same events – which would allow scientists to get even better measurements of these violent cosmic phenomena.

— amina khan, sacbee.com, "Black hole collision confirms another part of Einstein's theory of relativity", 1 June 2017

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

First Known Use of measurement

1590

Other Mathematics and Statistics Terms

abscissa, denominator, divisor, equilateral, exponent, hypotenuse, logarithm, oblique, radii, rhomb

MEASUREMENT Defined for English Language Learners

measurement

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noun

Definition of measurement for English Language Learners

: the act or process of measuring something
: a size, length, or amount known by measuring something

MEASUREMENT Defined for Kids

measurement

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noun mea·sure·ment \ˈme-zhər-mənt\

Definition of measurement for Students

1 : the act of determining size, capacity, or quantity The instruments provide accurate measurement.
2 : the extent, size, capacity, or amount of something as has been determined The room's measurements are 20 feet by 14 feet.