Monday, April 2, 2012

ton, tun

Ton or ton means 2,000 pounds, or something that weighs 2,000 pounds--
Iron ore and coal are bought and sold by the ton.
This truck isn't big enough to carry a ton of goods.

Tub or tun ( rhymes with ton ) means a large vat or barrel--
You may see a tun of wine if you visit a vineyard.
A tun holds more than 200 gallons of wine.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"A tun of wine weighs more than a ton."

Note--not to be confused with a French word you may see in an English book--"ton" ( rhymes with tone, or close to it ). "Ton" means stylishness or doing things well, according to fashion--
She wanted to be a fashionable woman, with the real bon ton.

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