metric system
noun
: a decimal system of weights and measures based on the meter and on the kilogram
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Recipes from the United States will normally use imperial units (ounces and pounds), while recipes from outside of the United States will usually use the metric system (grams and kilograms). 
Eva Bleyer, Good Housekeeping, 22 Aug. 2022 Modern weapons also require sophisticated maintenance, which takes further training, and American weapons generally do not use the metric system, which means different tools and wrenches. New York Times, 15 June 2022 The United States may have retired the metric system, but the rest of the world hasn't. Rena Behar, Travel + Leisure, 6 May 2022 Local dialects were effectively banned, and use of the new, highly rational metric system was required. Christopher Beha, Harper’s Magazine , 18 Jan. 2022 The metric system, which makes far more sense than the imperial system, works in tens. Elise Hannum, Vulture, 17 Dec. 2021 As a scientist who publishes in the scientific literature, the standard expectation is to use the metric system and the Celsius or even Kelvin scales. Marshall Shepherd, Forbes, 9 Nov. 2021 An investigation found the root of the problem: The spacecraft was using the metric system while commands from the ground were sent in English units (pounds-seconds). April Margulies, Forbes, 2 Sep. 2021 Like most of the world, the U.K. has used the metric system for more than half a century, though people there never stopped ordering pints in the pub and measuring themselves in feet and inches. David Meyer, Fortune, 17 Sep. 2021 See More
Eva Bleyer, Good Housekeeping, 22 Aug. 2022 Modern weapons also require sophisticated maintenance, which takes further training, and American weapons generally do not use the metric system, which means different tools and wrenches. New York Times, 15 June 2022 The United States may have retired the metric system, but the rest of the world hasn't. Rena Behar, Travel + Leisure, 6 May 2022 Local dialects were effectively banned, and use of the new, highly rational metric system was required. Christopher Beha, Harper’s Magazine , 18 Jan. 2022 The metric system, which makes far more sense than the imperial system, works in tens. Elise Hannum, Vulture, 17 Dec. 2021 As a scientist who publishes in the scientific literature, the standard expectation is to use the metric system and the Celsius or even Kelvin scales. Marshall Shepherd, Forbes, 9 Nov. 2021 An investigation found the root of the problem: The spacecraft was using the metric system while commands from the ground were sent in English units (pounds-seconds). April Margulies, Forbes, 2 Sep. 2021 Like most of the world, the U.K. has used the metric system for more than half a century, though people there never stopped ordering pints in the pub and measuring themselves in feet and inches. David Meyer, Fortune, 17 Sep. 2021 See More Word History
First Known Use
1864, in the meaning defined above
Kids Definition
metric system
noun
: a system of weights and measures in which the meter is the unit of length and the kilogram is the unit of weight
Medical Definition
metric system
noun
: a decimal system of weights and measures based on the meter and on the kilogram compare cgs, mks