pounds
noun · verb
Form of pound , plural of pound.
Simple meaning
The unit of currency used in the United Kingdom and its dependencies.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
powndzIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈpaʊndz
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
plural of pound
The unit of currency used in the United Kingdom and its dependencies. It is divided into 100 pence. Symbol £.
plural of pound
A unit of currency in various currency systems.
plural of pound
16 ounces avoirdupois
“He got a hernia when he tried to lift 100 pounds.”
plural of pound
A symbol for a unit of currency (especially for the pound sterling in Great Britain)
verb
third-person singular of pound
To strike hard, usually repeatedly.
third-person singular of pound
(intransitive, of a body part, generally heart, blood, or head) To beat strongly or throb.
third-person singular of pound
To advance heavily with measured steps.
third-person singular of pound
To confine in, or as in, a pound; to impound.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The unit of currency used in the United Kingdom and its dependencies. It is divided into 100 pence. Symbol £.
Used this way, pounds is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. This sense is about measurement, so it is used where accuracy is the point.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Technical/specialist writing
- Academic writing
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use pounds
- “He got a hernia when he tried to lift 100 pounds.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Something weighing a given number of pounds.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A unit of pressure.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
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