A measurement vocabulary sheet for middle school with its answer key: metric and customary units, tools and conversions.
Name Date
Measurement Word Search
Find every word hidden in the grid. Words go across and down.
0 of 16 words found
ENQTBRONWNKNNUL
HLWEPWWLOXHIAVT
YLITMETERRIVDGO
EIXOXIJWVONTCQS
YTQTWGGRAMCSOLM
LENGTHRURMHNNIX
HRHNITELEODCVYW
HFLKUEMEASUREHG
NJZPROTRACTORIM
SUBWCAODENSITYP
CMUERWHETRNHESE
AEXVPTBVOLUMEOW
LHSSCKLAIRRMASS
ECAPACITYEPOAUU
WNUSRVGAZSWNRTS
This grid is wider and taller than its box. Slide it to see every letter.To drag, hold the first letter for a moment, then slide.Keyboard: Tab to the grid, arrow keys to move, Enter on the first and last letter.
INCH
METER
LITER
GRAM
RULER
SCALE
PROTRACTOR
LENGTH
MASS
WEIGHT
VOLUME
CAPACITY
AREA
DENSITY
MEASURE
CONVERT
16 of 20 words from the Measurement Key Terms list.
Tap or click the first letter of a word, then its last letter. Or drag across the word. On a touch screen, hold the first letter for a moment before you drag. On a keyboard, the arrow keys move, Enter marks the first and the last letter, and Escape clears a first letter.
AcreA unit of land area equal to 43,560 square feet.
CupEight fluid ounces.
CustomaryThe name of the system of inches, pounds and gallons used in the United States.
FahrenheitThe temperature scale on which water freezes at 32 degrees and boils at 212.
FootTwelve inches.
GallonFour quarts.
ImperialThe British system of units set up in the 1820s, a cousin of US customary units.
InchOne twelfth of a foot.
Mile5,280 feet, or 1,760 yards.
OunceOne sixteenth of a pound.
PintTwo cups.
PoundSixteen ounces.
QuartTwo pints, or one fourth of a gallon.
TablespoonThree teaspoons, or half a fluid ounce.
TeaspoonOne third of a tablespoon.
TonIn the United States, 2,000 pounds.
YardThree feet, or 36 inches.
Show all 173 words (156 more)
Metric Base Units and Prefixes 20
AmpereThe SI base unit of electric current.
CandelaThe SI base unit for how bright a light source is in one direction.
CentiThe prefix that means one hundredth.
DeciThe prefix that means one tenth.
GigaThe prefix that means one billion.
GramA metric unit of mass. One thousand of them make one kilo.
HectareA metric unit of land area: a square with sides of 100 meters.
HectoThe prefix that means one hundred.
KelvinThe SI base unit of temperature. Its scale starts at absolute zero.
KiloThe prefix that means one thousand.
LiterA metric unit of capacity equal to 1,000 cubic centimeters.
MegaThe prefix that means one million.
MeterThe base metric unit of length. A yard is a little shorter.
MetricThe system of units that uses decimal prefixes such as kilo and milli.
MicroThe prefix that means one millionth.
MilliThe prefix that means one thousandth.
MoleThe SI base unit for an amount of substance.
NanoThe prefix that means one billionth.
PrefixA word part put before a unit name to make the unit larger or smaller.
TonneA metric unit of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms.
Metric Units With Prefixes 18
CentigramOne hundredth of a gram.
CentiliterOne hundredth of a liter.
CentimeterOne hundredth of a meter.
Cubic meterThe volume of a cube with edges one meter long.
DeciliterOne tenth of a liter.
DecimeterOne tenth of a meter.
HectoliterOne hundred liters.
KilogramOne thousand grams. It is the SI base unit of mass.
KiloliterOne thousand liters.
KilometerOne thousand meters.
Metric tonThe name used in the United States for the tonne.
MicrogramOne millionth of a gram.
MicrometerOne millionth of a meter.
MilligramOne thousandth of a gram.
MilliliterOne thousandth of a liter, the same as one cubic centimeter.
MillimeterOne thousandth of a meter.
NanometerOne billionth of a meter.
Square meterThe area of a square with sides one meter long.
Old and Unusual Units 21
BarrelA unit of volume that changes with what is in it, such as oil.
BushelA unit of dry volume used for crops such as wheat. It holds four pecks.
CaratA unit of mass for gemstones, equal to 200 milligrams.
ChainA surveyor's unit of 66 feet.
CordA unit for stacked firewood: 128 cubic feet.
CubitAn ancient unit: the length from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger.
FathomSix feet. It is used for the depth of water.
FurlongOne eighth of a mile. It is still used in horse racing.
GrainA tiny unit of mass, based on one seed of a cereal.
HandFour inches. It is used to measure the height of horses.
HogsheadA large cask, and an old unit for the liquid inside it.
HorsepowerA unit of power used for engines and motors.
KnotA unit of speed: one nautical mile per hour.
LeagueAn old unit of distance that was never the same from place to place.
Light-yearThe distance that light travels in one year.
Nautical mileA unit of length used at sea and in the air: exactly 1,852 meters.
PaceAn old unit of length: one walking step, or one double step.
PeckA unit of dry volume equal to 8 dry quarts.
RodA surveyor's unit of 16 and a half feet.
SpanAn old unit: a spread hand, from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger.
StoneA British unit of 14 pounds.
Measuring Tools 29
AltimeterA tool that shows how high something is above a fixed level.
AnemometerA tool that shows the speed of the wind.
BalanceA tool with two pans that compares the mass of two things.
BarometerA tool that shows the pressure of the air.
BeakerA wide glass container with a pouring lip and volume marks.
CaliperA tool with two jaws that finds a width, a thickness or a diameter.
CompassA tool with a needle that points north. It gives direction in degrees.
GaugeA dial that shows an amount, such as the fuel in a tank.
GraduatedMarked with lines for reading amounts, as a cylinder or beaker is.
HourglassTwo glass bulbs with sand that runs from one to the other.
HygrometerA tool that shows how much water vapor is in the air.
LevelA tool with a bubble that shows if a surface is flat.
Measuring cupA kitchen tool with lines for cups and fluid ounces.
MeterstickA stiff strip 100 centimeters long.
OdometerThe dial that shows how far a car or a bicycle has gone.
PedometerA small device that counts each step a person takes.
ProtractorA half circle marked in degrees, used on angles.
RulerA straight strip marked in inches or centimeters.
ScaleA tool that shows how heavy a thing is.
SextantA sailor's tool that finds the angle between a star and the horizon.
SpeedometerThe dial in a car that shows how fast it is going.
StopwatchA tool that times an event to a fraction of a second.
SundialA tool that tells the hour by where a shadow falls.
Tape measureA long strip that rolls up, marked for finding lengths.
ThermometerA tool that shows temperature.
Tick markOne of the short lines along the edge of a ruler.
TimerA tool that counts down and rings when the minutes are up.
Trundle wheelA wheel on a handle that is rolled along the ground to find a distance.
YardstickA stiff strip three feet long, marked in inches.
What We Measure 26
AltitudeHow high something is above the ground or the sea.
AmountHow much there is of something.
AngleThe amount of turn between two lines that meet. It is given in degrees.
AreaThe amount of surface inside a flat shape, in square units.
CapacityHow much a container can hold.
CircumferenceThe distance around a circle.
DensityMass divided by volume.
DepthHow far down something goes from its top or surface.
DimensionOne of the directions an object is measured in, such as length or width.
DistanceHow far it is from one place to another.
DurationHow long an event lasts.
ElevationThe height of a place above sea level.
HeightHow tall something is from bottom to top.
LengthHow long something is from end to end.
MassThe amount of matter in an object. It is found in grams or kilograms.
MeasurementA number and a unit that tell how much, how long or how heavy.
PerimeterThe distance around the outside of a flat shape.
PressureHow hard something pushes on each unit of area.
SizeHow big or small something is.
SpeedHow fast something moves: distance divided by the time taken.
TemperatureHow hot or cold something is.
ThicknessHow far it is through an object from one face to the other.
TimeWhat clocks and calendars keep track of.
VolumeThe amount of space an object takes up, in cubic units.
WeightHow heavy an object is: the pull of gravity on it.
WidthHow far something goes from side to side.
Estimating and Converting 23
AccuracyHow close a measurement is to the true value.
ApproximateClose to the true value, but not exact.
BenchmarkA familiar length used to judge a unit, as a yard is close to a meter.
CalibrateTo check a tool against a known standard and adjust it.
ConversionA change of units, such as feet to inches.
ConvertTo change a measurement from one unit to another.
CubedRaised to the power of three, as units of volume are.
ErrorThe gap between a measured value and the true value.
EstimateA careful guess at a measurement, made without a tool.
ExactWith no error at all.
FormulaA rule written with symbols, such as area equals length times width.
IncrementThe step between one mark on a scale and the next.
MeasureTo find the size or amount of something with a tool and a unit.
NearestRound to the closest mark: to the ___ quarter inch.
PrecisionHow close repeated measurements are to each other.
ReadingThe number you take from a tool's scale.
Scale factorThe number that every length is multiplied by to make a scale drawing.
SignificantThe digits of a measurement that carry real meaning are called this.
SquaredRaised to the power of two, as units of area are.
StandardAgreed on and the same everywhere, as a meter is.
ToleranceThe amount of error that is allowed in a measurement.
UncertaintyThe doubt that is left in any measurement.
UnitA fixed amount used to measure, such as an inch or a gram.
Time, Speed and Temperature 19
Absolute zeroThe coldest temperature there can be.
AccelerationHow quickly velocity changes.
AnnualHappening once every year.
BoilingThe point at which water turns to steam: 212 on one scale, 100 on another.
CelsiusThe temperature scale on which water freezes at 0 degrees and boils at 100.
CenturyOne hundred years.
DayTwenty-four hours.
DegreeA unit of temperature, and also of angle.
ElapsedDescribes the time that has passed between a start and an end.
FortnightTwo weeks, or 14 days.
FreezingThe point at which water turns to ice: 32 on one scale, 0 on another.
HourSixty minutes.
IntervalThe amount of time between two events.
Leap yearA year with one extra day.
MillenniumOne thousand years.
MinuteSixty seconds.
RateAn amount of one thing for each unit of another, such as miles per hour.
SecondThe SI base unit of time.
VelocitySpeed in a given direction.
How this list was compiled: Own work: the word list and every clue were written for this page. The meanings and every figure were checked on 2026-10-09 against English Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/, in the articles Metre, Litre, Gram, Tonne, Hectare, Metric system, Metric prefix, Kilo-, Hecto-, Deci-, Centi-, Milli-, Mega-, Giga-, Micro-, Nano-, SI base unit, Kelvin, Ampere, Mole, Candela, United States customary units, Inch, Yard, Pound, Ounce, Gallon, Acre, Fahrenheit, Celsius, Absolute zero, Cubit, Span, Pace, Hand, Fathom, Furlong, League, Rod, Chain, Grain, Bushel, Peck, Barrel, Cord, Knot, Carat, Stone, Hogshead, Horsepower, Nautical mile, Light-year, Calipers, Odometer, Speedometer, Altimeter, Pedometer, Barometer, Anemometer, Hygrometer, Sextant, Hourglass, Sundial, Spirit level, Surveyor's wheel, Metre-stick, Accuracy and precision, Calibration, Significant figures, Density, Pressure, Velocity, Elevation, Altitude, Leap year, Fortnight and Millennium. Spellings were checked on 2026-10-09 against the entries of English Wiktionary, https://en.wiktionary.org/. Licence: own work
How it works
This middle school measurement word search printable opens on 16 key terms: Inch, Meter, Liter, Gram, Ruler, Scale, Capacity, Volume, Density and Convert among them. Eight more lists sort 173 words, each with a one-line meaning.
Read the full guide
Two systems, kept apart
Under Start from a list, Customary Units runs from Inch and Ounce to Gallon and Acre, and its clues are the conversions: Mile prints as "5,280 feet, or 1,760 yards." Metric Base Units and Prefixes has Meter, Liter and Gram with Kilo, Centi and Milli. Metric Units With Prefixes builds them into Kilometer, Milligram and Milliliter, for a sheet that is metric only.
Tools, old units and precision
Measuring Tools has Protractor, Caliper, Odometer and Barometer. What We Measure has Perimeter, Circumference and Density. Estimating and Converting has Accuracy, Precision, Benchmark and Scale factor. Old and Unusual Units has Cubit, Fathom, Furlong and Carat, each with its size in the clue.
Easy Measurement has 53 words of three to five letters, such as Inch, Foot, Yard, Cup, Pint and Gram.
Spellings are American: Meter and Liter, not Metre and Litre.
Questions and answers
What are the metric prefixes?
Kilo means one thousand, hecto one hundred, deci one tenth, centi one hundredth and milli one thousandth. Put before meter, liter or gram, each makes a larger or smaller unit: a kilometer is 1,000 meters and a milligram is one thousandth of a gram.
What is the difference between accuracy and precision?
Accuracy is how close a measurement is to the true value. Precision is how close repeated measurements are to each other. A scale that shows the same wrong weight every time is precise but not accurate.
How many feet are in a mile?
5,280 feet, which is 1,760 yards. The Customary Units list also gives 12 inches to a foot, 3 feet to a yard, 16 ounces to a pound, 2,000 pounds to a ton and 4 quarts to a gallon.