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British Measurements Trivia Quiz

The UK has succumbed to the Système International d'Unités (a.k.a. the metric system), but old units are still remembered and sometimes used in some activities. How much do you know about these?

A multiple-choice quiz by TabbyTom. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
TabbyTom

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
132,657

Updated
Jun 13 23

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
2206

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. The height of a horse is traditionally measured in hands. How many inches make a hand? Hint

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Question 2 of 10

2. How many yards make a furlong? Hint

200

100

220

440

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Question 3 of 10

3. Ever since the laws of cricket were first written down in 1744, the length of a cricket pitch has been 22 yards. Twenty-two yards is a traditional unit of measurement: what is it called? Hint

rod

perch

pole

chain

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Question 4 of 10

4. Which is bigger, a U.S. pint or an Imperial (British) pint?

Answer: (Imperial or US .. I or US)

5. Mention of pints naturally makes a Brit think of beer. Draught beer in the UK is traditionally served from casks containing a number of Imperial gallons. Which of these casks is the biggest? Hint

firkin

barrel

hogshead

kilderkin

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Question 6 of 10

6. When British scientists used Imperial units, they often preferred to measure speed in feet per second rather than miles per hour. If a car is travelling at 60 miles per hour, what is that in feet per second? Hint

100

1,760

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Question 7 of 10

7. The avoirdupois pound is the same in Britain and in the US. However, while Americans speak of their weight in pounds, Britons generally use stones and pounds. How many pounds make a stone? Hint

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Question 8 of 10

8. In the UK and US, a car's fuel consumption is measured in miles per gallon. What is the usual measure in Europe? Hint

litres per 100 kilometers

kilometres per litre

litres per kilometre

kilometres per hectolitre

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Question 9 of 10

9. One of Shakespeare's best known songs is sung by Ariel in "The Tempest" (Act 1, Scene 2), and begins "Full fathom five thy father lies". So how far below the sea's surface is Ferdinand's father? Hint

300 feet

30 feet

600 feet

50 feet

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Question 10 of 10

10. In the US a ton is 2,000 pounds. But how many pounds made a ton in the UK? Hint

2,400

2,160

1,760

2,240

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. The height of a horse is traditionally measured in hands. How many inches make a hand?

Answer: 4

It's the approximate width of the human hand (including the thumb). So a horse that stands 5ft 4in tall at the shoulders is said to measure 16 hands. A pony is a horse of 14.2 hands (4ft 10in) or less.

2. How many yards make a furlong?

Answer: 220

From the Old English words for "furrow" and "long": it is historically the length of a furrow. It survives mainly in horse-racing.

3. Ever since the laws of cricket were first written down in 1744, the length of a cricket pitch has been 22 yards. Twenty-two yards is a traditional unit of measurement: what is it called?

Answer: chain

A metal chain of this length was formerly used by land-surveyors. Rod, pole and perch are alternative names for a unit of a quarter of a chain (5½ yards or 16 ft 6 in). The length of a cricket pitch will probably never change, though recent editions of the laws also give a metric equivalent of 20.12 metres.

4. Which is bigger, a U.S. pint or an Imperial (British) pint?

Answer: Imperial

An Imperial pint is twenty Imperial fluid ounces. A US pint is 16 US fluid ounces. Just to complicate things, a US fluid ounce is just over 1.04 Imperial fluid ounces. A US pint is just under five sixths of an Imperial pint. As a small boy in the UK, conditioned to believe that everything was bigger in the States, I was surprised to find that American measures of capacity were smaller than ours.

5. Mention of pints naturally makes a Brit think of beer. Draught beer in the UK is traditionally served from casks containing a number of Imperial gallons. Which of these casks is the biggest?

Answer: hogshead

A hogshead contains 54 gallons, a barrel 36 gallons, a kilderkin 18 gallons and a firkin 9 gallons.

Answer: 88

There are 60 minutes and 3,600 seconds in an hour, so 60 miles an hour is one mile per minute or sixtieth of a mile per second. A mile is 5,280 feet; so a sixtieth of a mile is 88 feet.

7. The avoirdupois pound is the same in Britain and in the US. However, while Americans speak of their weight in pounds, Britons generally use stones and pounds. How many pounds make a stone?

Answer: 14

So if you weigh 180 lb in the States, you weigh 12 st 12 lb ("twelve stone twelve") in Britain.

8. In the UK and US, a car's fuel consumption is measured in miles per gallon. What is the usual measure in Europe?

Answer: litres per 100 kilometers

For conversions, the magic figure in the UK is 282.481. Divide that figure by the miles per gallon and you get the litres per 100 km. Divide it by the litres per 100 km, and you get the m.p.g. So a German car that uses 9.4 litres per 100 km will do 30 miles to the gallon in the UK; and if you want to get 40 miles to the Imperial gallon from a European car, look for a fuel consumption figure of 7.1 litres per 100 km. If you're American, the magic figure is 235.215.

Answer: 30 feet

A fathom was a measure of 6 feet (1.83 metres), used mainly by seamen in taking soundings. When Samuel Clemens heard the Mississippi leadsmen calling "By the mark, twain", they were recording a depth of two fathoms or 12 feet.

10. In the US a ton is 2,000 pounds. But how many pounds made a ton in the UK?

Answer: 2,240

The Imperial ton (2,240 lb) has been largely superseded by the metric tonne (1,000 kg or a little under 2,205 lb). The hundredweight sack of coal or vegetables (112 lb) has been supplanted by the 50 kg sack.

Source: Author TabbyTom

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor crisw before going online.
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