a (metric) unit

kathy   Thu Jan 12, 2006 12:44 am GMT
Guest   Thu Jan 12, 2006 12:45 am GMT
your point?
kathy   Thu Jan 12, 2006 12:49 am GMT
I have a quetion when to use singular form for a metric unit.
"1 gram" --> correct
"1.5 grams" --> correct
"0.5 grams" ? or "0.5 gram" ?

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=34067&dict=CALD

According to the example sentence, the expression in "0.5 grams" seems correct.
Is it considered so because 0.5 = 1 x 1/10 ?

kathy
Guest   Thu Jan 12, 2006 1:53 am GMT
<"0.5 grams" ? or "0.5 gram" ? >

'Point five of a gram' not 'Point five of a grams'
or
'Half a gram' not 'half a grams'
Guest   Thu Jan 12, 2006 2:11 am GMT
I say "point five grams" or "half a gram"; 0.63 is "point six three grams".
Kazoo   Thu Jan 12, 2006 3:19 am GMT
It depends how you say it. 'Half a gram' and 'point five grams' are both correct. In the second example you are saying a number greater than one right before gram(s), which is why the 's' is added.
Jim   Thu Jan 12, 2006 4:15 am GMT
Someone should edit that dictionary page. Both "g" and "gm" may be abbreviations of "gram" but only the former has any official recognition. I would not recomend anyone use "gm".

Pluralisation of metric units in English is no different to pluralisation of any other English noun. As far as I'm aware you'll get both "0.5 thing" and "0.5 things" so who's to say which is correct?
kathy   Thu Jan 12, 2006 5:36 am GMT
Thank you for your opinions.

How about "0.001 kilograms" as expressed in the referred dictionary page?
Though a number before kilogram is one, it is described in plural form. Why?
Kazoo   Thu Jan 12, 2006 6:46 am GMT
Good question. I guess it just comes down to the fact that not everyting in English is governed by rules. Sometimes English is just illogical, and there is no point in trying to figure certain things out. On the other hand, that does mean that English is a very flexible and forgiving language, which is a very good thing for someone who is trying to communicate in English when it is not their first language.
American   Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:01 am GMT
Metric system? What the hell is that? You mean the measurement system they use in Canada? Where else do they use this 'metric system'?
American   Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:01 am GMT
Metric system? What the hell is that? You mean the measurement system they use in Canada? Where else do they use this 'metric system'?
American   Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:01 am GMT
Metric system? What the hell is that? You mean the measurement system they use in Canada? Where else do they use this 'metric system'?
Adam   Thu Jan 12, 2006 6:21 pm GMT
It's only the metric system. Who cares? It's not as important as Imperial.
Uriel   Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:10 pm GMT
<<Metric system? What the hell is that? You mean the measurement system they use in Canada? Where else do they use this 'metric system'?>>

Uh, pretty much EVERYWHERE else. Where have you been?
American   Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:57 pm GMT
<Uh, pretty much EVERYWHERE else. Where have you been? >

Just to BC Canada.

If we (USA) are using a system not used in most places I would personally favor adopting this 'Metric System' in the USA.