The quart (symbol: qt) is an English unit of volume equal to a quarter

gallon The gallon is a unit of volume in imperial units and United States customary units. Three different versions are in current use: *the imperial gallon (imp gal), defined as , which is or was used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Aus ...

. Three kinds of quarts are currently used: the liquid quart and dry quart of the US customary system and the of the British imperial system. All are roughly equal to one

liter The litre (international spelling) or liter (American English spelling) (SI symbols L and l, other symbol used: ℓ) is a metric unit of volume. It is equal to 1 cubic decimetre (dm3), 1000 cubic centimetres (cm3) or 0.001 cubic metre (m3 ...

. It is divided into two

pint The pint (, ; symbol pt, sometimes abbreviated as ''p'') is a unit of volume or capacity in both the imperial and United States customary measurement systems. In both of those systems it is traditionally one eighth of a gallon. The British imp ...

s or (in the US) four

cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, c ...

s. Historically, the exact size of the quart has varied with the different values of gallons over time and in reference to different commodities.

Name

The term comes from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

quartus Quartus ( el, Κούαρτος, Kouartos) was an early Christian who is mentioned in the Bible. According to church tradition, he is known as Quartus of Berytus and is numbered among the Seventy Disciples. Furthermore, he was Bishop of Beirut ...

'' (meaning one-quarter) via the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

'' quart''. However, although the French word '' quart'' has the same root, it frequently means something entirely different. In Canadian French in particular, the quart is called '' pinte'', whilst the

is called '' chopine''.

History

Since gallons of various sizes have historically been in use, the corresponding quarts have also existed with various sizes.

Definitions and equivalencies

US liquid quart

In the United States, all traditional length and volume measures have been legally standardized for commerce by the

international yard and pound The international yard and pound are two units of measurement that were the subject of an agreement among representatives of six nations signed on 1 July 1959: the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Afri ...

agreement of 1959, using the definition of 1 yard being exactly equal to 0.9144

meters The metre ( British spelling) or meter ( American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pr ...

. From this definition is derived the metric equivalencies for inches, feet, and miles, area measures, and measures of volume. The US liquid quart equals 57.75 cubic inches, which is exactly equal to 0.946352946 liters."Authorized tables"
,

United States Code In the law of the United States, the Code of Laws of the United States of America (variously abbreviated to Code of Laws of the United States, United States Code, U.S. Code, U.S.C., or USC) is the official compilation and codification of th ...

, Title 15, ch. 6, subchapter I, sec. 205, accessed 19 July 2008.

US dry quart

In the United States, the

dry Dry or dryness most often refers to: * Lack of rainfall, which may refer to ** Arid regions ** Drought * Dry or dry area, relating to legal prohibition of selling, serving, or imbibing alcoholic beverages * Dry humor, deadpan * Dryness (medica ...

quart is equal to one quarter of a US dry gallon, or exactly 1.101220942715 liters.

Imperial quart

The imperial quart, which is used for both liquid and dry capacity, is equal to one quarter of an imperial gallon, or exactly 1.1365225 liters. In the United Kingdom goods may be sold by the quart if the equivalent metric measure is also given. In French Canada, by federal law, the imperial quart is called pinte.

Winchester quart

The Winchester quart is an archaic measure, roughly equal to 2 imperial quarts or 2.25 liters. The 2.5L bottles in which laboratory chemicals are supplied are sometimes referred to as Winchester quart bottles, although they contain slightly more than a traditional Winchester quart.

Reputed quart

The reputed quart was a measure equal to two-thirds of an imperial quart (or one-sixth of an imperial gallon), at about 0.7577liters, which is very close to one US fifth (0.757 liters). The reputed quart was previously recognized as a standard size of wine bottle in the United Kingdom, and is only about 1% larger than the current standard wine bottle of 0.75L.

Notes

References

External links

* * {{United States Customary Units Alcohol measurement Cooking weights and measures Customary units of measurement in the United States Imperial units Units of volume