kilogramme

Forms

kilogramme m (plural kilogrammes)^[1]

Etymology

It is a compound from French kilo- + gramme.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} The prefix comes from Ancient Greek χίλιοι (khílioi, “thousand”);^[1][7] the second element was taken in 1793 from γράμμα (grámma) in its sense “scruple, the 24th part of an ounce”, a sense due to a clumsy rendering of Latin scripulum.^[2][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

It was created by the law of 18 Germinal of the Year III (1795), which set up the units of the metric system, for a weight of a thousand grams.^[2][4][9]

Semantic evolution

The clipping kilo is recorded from 1858 and has largely replaced kilogramme in everyday use.^[9][10] In 1889 the General Conference on Weights and Measures made the kilogram the unit of mass, defined by a platinum-iridium prototype kept at Sèvres;^[4][5] it is now defined by the Planck constant.^[11] Compound units such as kilogramme par mètre cube appear in dictionaries from 1968.^[4]

English kilogram is recorded from 1797, from the French word.^[12]

Timeline

• 1795 – Kilogramme is created by the law of 18 Germinal Year III.^[2][3][4]
• 1797 – English kilogram is recorded.^[12]
• 1858 – The clipping kilo is recorded.^[9]
• 1889 – It becomes the unit of mass of the international system.^[4]
• 1968 – Larousse records kilogramme par mètre cube.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. A kilogram, a mass of a thousand grams (symbol kg), usually shortened to kilo.^[5][11][6]
2. (metrology) The base unit of mass of the International System of Units.^[5][11][13]
3. Kilogramme par mètre, par mètre carré, par mètre cube: units of linear, surface and volumic mass.^[5][6][13]
4. Kilogramme-force or kilogramme-poids: a former unit of force, worth 9.81 newtons.^[5]

Word family

• kilo

Related words

• gramme

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard
3. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c d e f g Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
5. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ a b c Académie française (1992–2024), Dictionnaire de l'Académie française, 9th ed., Paris: Académie française / Fayard / Imprimerie nationale
7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 636a
8. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
9. ^ a b c Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
11. ^ a b c Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
12. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
13. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)