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| - The United States still, for most purposes, uses the traditional, non-metric units which swere mainly inherited from England. Over the course of time, changes have been made on both sides of the Atlantic so that the British Imperial units came to differ, in some cases, from similarly-named United States customary units. However, in the 1950s, agreements were made between the U. S. and Commonwealth of Nations countries that in many cases brought about identity between BI units and similarly-named United States customary units. Some differences remain, particularly in units of capacity and weight or mass.
- The United States customary system, or American system and sometimes "English units", of units of measurement is the most commonly used system of measurement in the United States. It is similar but not identical to the obsolescent British Imperial units. The U.S. is the only industrialized nation that does not mainly use the metric system in its commercial and standards activities, although the International System of Units (SI, often referred to as "metric") is universally used in science, and increasingly in medicine, government, and many sectors of industry. The vast majority of U.S. customary units have been defined in terms of the meter and the kilogram since the Mendenhall Order of 1893 (and, in practice, for many years before that date). These definitions were refined in 1959.
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| abstract
| - The United States customary system, or American system and sometimes "English units", of units of measurement is the most commonly used system of measurement in the United States. It is similar but not identical to the obsolescent British Imperial units. The U.S. is the only industrialized nation that does not mainly use the metric system in its commercial and standards activities, although the International System of Units (SI, often referred to as "metric") is universally used in science, and increasingly in medicine, government, and many sectors of industry. The vast majority of U.S. customary units have been defined in terms of the meter and the kilogram since the Mendenhall Order of 1893 (and, in practice, for many years before that date). These definitions were refined in 1959. The U.S. customary units have common roots with the Imperial units which were used in the British Empire and are still used, mainly informally, in Britain and other countries. Many U.S. units are virtually identical to their Imperial counterparts, but the U.S. customary system developed from English units in use before the Imperial system was standardized in 1824, and there are several numerical differences from the Imperial system.
- The United States still, for most purposes, uses the traditional, non-metric units which swere mainly inherited from England. Over the course of time, changes have been made on both sides of the Atlantic so that the British Imperial units came to differ, in some cases, from similarly-named United States customary units. However, in the 1950s, agreements were made between the U. S. and Commonwealth of Nations countries that in many cases brought about identity between BI units and similarly-named United States customary units. Some differences remain, particularly in units of capacity and weight or mass. As the Commonwealth countries have decided separately to move toward the use of metric (mainly SI) units, the U. S. more and more becomes the last refuge of its customary unit system. But in this regard, it is not likely to change. Attempts have been made to change the U. S. to metric usage, and in some things (for example, alcoholic beverage containers), metric sizes have become required by law. However, the public in the U. S. appears to prefer staying with the customary units. See also:
* United States customary units of length or distance
* United States customary units of mass or weight
* United States customary units of capacity
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