pound 1 
(pound)
(pound)n.
1. Abbr. lb.
a. A unit of weight equal to 16 ounces (453.592 grams).
b. A unit of apothecary weight equal to 12 ounces (373.242 grams). See Table at measurement.
2. A unit of weight differing in various countries and times.
3.
a. See pound-force.
b. See pound-mass.
4.
a. The primary unit of currency in the United Kingdom, worth 20 shillings or 240 old pence before the decimalization of 1971. Also called pound sterling.
b. See Table at currency.
5. The primary unit of currency in Ireland and Cyprus before the adoption of the euro.
6. A primary unit of currency in Scotland before the Act of Union (1707). Also called pound scots.
7. The pound key on a telephone.
[Middle English, from Old English pund, from West Germanic *punda-, from Latin (lībra) pondō, (a pound) by weight; see (s)pen- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]