meter

meter — noun

IPA/ˈmiːtə(r)/
KK[mˈitɚ]IPA/ˈmiːtər/
  • metersingular
  • metersplural

1. An instrument fitted in a home or workplace that shows how much of a supply — fo

1.nounB1
Definition

An instrument fitted in a home or workplace that shows how much of a supply — for instance gas, electricity, or water — has been consumed.

Example

The gas company sent someone to read the meter outside our house.

collocation: read the meter

Obi checked the electricity meter to see how much power the factory had used overnight.

Common collocations
  • read the meter
  • check the meter
  • meter reading
  • gas meter
  • electricity meter
  • water meter
  • smart meter
  • meter box
Synonyms
  • gauge

    A gauge shows a measurement at a point in time (like a pressure gauge); a meter typically tracks and records usage over time.

  • counter

    A counter records a running total (e.g., a hit counter); a meter can show both instantaneous rate and total usage.

  • reader

    Less common as a noun for the device itself; usually refers to the person or the handheld device used to collect the reading.

Usage Note

Most commonly paired with a specific resource name: gas meter, electricity meter, water meter. A smart meter sends readings automatically; an older meter must be read by a person.

Common Mistakes

The meter reader looked at the metre.
The meter reader looked at the meter.
In US English, 'meter' is the device and 'meter' is also the length unit (spelled 'metre' in the UK).

2. The equipment fitted inside a taxi that calculates how far the passenger has tra

2.nounB1
Definition

The equipment fitted inside a taxi that calculates how far the passenger has travelled and how long the journey took, then shows the fare owed.

Example

The taxi driver started the meter as soon as we got into the car.

collocation: start the meter

By the time Nikos reached the airport, the meter showed a fare of 850 dollars.

Common collocations
  • start the meter
  • the meter is running
  • turn off the meter
  • meter fare
  • meter reading
Synonyms
  • taximeter

    The formal technical name for the device; rarely used in everyday conversation.

  • fare meter

    Less common; emphasizes the cost display rather than the distance measurement.

Usage Note

Used almost exclusively in the context of taxis and rideshare vehicles. The phrase 'the meter is running' is also used figuratively to mean that costs are accumulating.

3. In US English, the way to spell the metric standard for measuring length — it eq

3.nounA2
Definition

In US English, the way to spell the metric standard for measuring length — it equals one hundred centimetres, or roughly thirty-nine inches.

Example

The swimming pool at the sports centre is 25 meters long.

Christopher needed a three-meter-long cable for his new computer desk.

Common collocations
  • meters long
  • meters high
  • meters deep
  • square meters
  • cubic meters
  • per meter
  • 100-meter dash
Synonyms
  • m (abbreviation)

    The standard written abbreviation for meter, used in measurements (e.g., 100 m).

Usage Note

In British English the same word is spelled 'metre'. Both spellings share the same pronunciation. The compound adjective form uses a hyphen and singular: a ten-meter rope (not 'ten-meters rope').

Common Mistakes

The room is 5 meters length.
The room is 5 meters long.
After a number + unit, use an adjective (long, wide, high, deep), not a noun.

4. The ordering of stressed and unstressed syllables within a poetic line, or the g

4.nounB2
Definition

The ordering of stressed and unstressed syllables within a poetic line, or the grouping of accented and unaccented beats in a piece of music.

Example

Indra studied the meter of Shakespeare's sonnets for her English literature exam.

The poem's gentle iambic meter gave it a flowing rhythm when Kabir read it aloud.

pattern: iambic meter (common poetic type)

Common collocations
  • iambic meter
  • poetic meter
  • 4/4 meter
  • 3/4 meter
  • change meter
  • meter pattern
Synonyms
  • rhythm

    A broader term covering any pattern of movement or sound; meter is specifically the structured, regular pattern of beats or stresses.

  • time signature

    In music notation, the time signature (e.g., 4/4) specifies the meter.

  • foot

    A poetic foot is a single unit of stressed and unstressed syllables; meter is built from repeated feet.

Usage Note

In poetry, common types include iambic meter (unstressed + stressed), trochaic meter (stressed + unstressed), and anapestic meter (two unstressed + one stressed). In music, meter is expressed as a time signature such as 4/4 or 3/4.

Common Mistakes

The song has a fast meter.
The song has a fast tempo.
Meter describes the beat pattern and grouping (e.g., 4/4), not the speed (tempo).

meter — verb

IPA/ˈmiː.tər/
KK[mˈitɚ]IPA/ˈmiː.t̬ɚ/

meter — noun

1. A word element added to the end of a noun to indicate an instrument that measure

1.nounB2
Definition

A word element added to the end of a noun to indicate an instrument that measures the thing named by the first part of the word — for example, a thermometer measures heat, a speedometer measures speed, and a barometer measures air pressure.

Example

The nurse placed a thermometer under Noa's tongue to check for a fever.

The speedometer on Jenna's dashboard showed that she was driving at 110 kilometers per hour.

Common collocations
  • thermometer
  • speedometer
  • barometer
  • odometer
  • voltmeter
  • micrometer
  • seismometer

Grammar Patterns

[-meter] at end of compound nouns

Usage Note

This combining form is not a standalone word — it always appears as the second part of a compound noun (thermometer, speedometer, barometer, odometer, voltmeter). The first part typically names what is being measured (thermo- = heat, speed, baro- = pressure, od- = road/journey). Some of these words use the variant spelling '-meter' (US) or '-metre' (UK) but the meaning is the same.

Common Mistakes

I bought a meter for temperature.
I bought a thermometer.
When the instrument has a specific -meter name (thermometer, barometer), use that compound word rather than describing it.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words refer to devices or displays that show a measurement, but they differ in scope and typical use. A 'meter' tracks and records usage over time — it remembers what has been consumed (e.g., a gas meter keeps a running total). A 'gauge' shows a reading at a single point in time, like a pressure gauge or a fuel gauge; it tells you the current state, not the accumulated amount. A 'counter' simply adds up events or items (a vote counter, a page counter) without measuring a continuous flow. An 'indicator' is the broadest term: any signal or display that shows a condition (a battery indicator, a traffic light indicator). In everyday speech, 'check the meter' implies looking at accumulated consumption, while 'check the gauge' means assessing the current level — for example, a driver checks the fuel gauge to see if the tank is nearly empty, not how much fuel has been used overall.

gauge ↗meter ↗counter ↗indicator ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • meter reading
  • meter box
  • meter fare
  • meter maid
  • meter man

Adverbs

Phrases

  • the meter is running
  • read the meter
  • on the meter
  • by the meter

Prepositions

  • at the meter
  • by the meter
  • per meter
  • in meters

Etymology

GreekLatinFrenchEnglish

The word 'meter' comes from ancient Greek 'metron' (μέτρον), meaning 'measure.' It entered English through Latin 'metrum' and Old French 'metre.' The sense of a measuring device (gas meter, water meter) developed in the 19th century, when inventors needed a word for instruments that 'measure' consumption. The combining form '-meter' (thermometer, barometer) follows the same Greek pattern, where the first part of the word names what is being measured. The spelling split — 'meter' in US English vs. 'metre' in British English — dates to the early 19th century, when Noah Webster's dictionary standardized several -re spellings to -er.