A unit of volume is a

unit of measurement A unit of measurement is a definite magnitude (mathematics), magnitude of a quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same kind of quantity. Any other quantity of that kind can ...

for measuring

volume Volume is a measure of occupied three-dimensional space. It is often quantified numerically using SI derived units (such as the cubic metre and litre) or by various imperial or US customary units (such as the gallon, quart, cubic inch). The de ...

or capacity, the extent of an object or space in three

dimensions In physics and mathematics, the dimension of a mathematical space (or object) is informally defined as the minimum number of coordinates needed to specify any point within it. Thus, a line has a dimension of one (1D) because only one coordina ...

. Units of capacity may be used to specify the volume of fluids or bulk goods, for example water, rice, sugar, grain or flour.

Units

According to the

SI system The International System of Units, known by the international abbreviation SI in all languages and sometimes pleonastically as the SI system, is the modern form of the metric system and the world's most widely used system of measurement. E ...

, the base unit for measuring length is the

metre 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 pref ...

. The SI unit of volume is thus the

cubic metre The cubic metre (in Commonwealth English and international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures) or cubic meter (in American English) is the unit of volume in the International System of Units (SI). Its symbol is m ...

, which is a derived unit, where:''SI Units - Volume''
at nist.gov. Retrieved 29 June 2022. 1 m³ = 1 m • 1 m • 1 m.

Comparison

Forestry and timber industry

British Commonwealth

Hoppus The hoppus cubic foot (or ‘hoppus cube’ or ‘h cu ft’) was the standard volume measurement used for timber in the British Empire and countries in the British sphere of influence before the introduction of metric units. It is still used in t ...

, cubic foot measure used in the British Empire and, nowadays, some Commonwealth countries for timber.

Germany

* Festmeter (fm), a unit of volume for logs ** Erntefestmeter (Efm), a unit of volume for trees or forests which assumes a 10% loss due to bark and 10% during the felling process. ** Vorratsfestmeter (Vfm), a unit of volume for trees or forests based on measurements including the bark. *

Raummeter The stere or stère (st) is a units of measurement, unit of volume in the metric system, original metric system equal to one cubic metre. The stere is typically used for measuring large quantities of firewood or other cut wood, while the cubic me ...

(rm), or

stere The stere or stère (st) is a unit of volume in the original metric system equal to one cubic metre. The stere is typically used for measuring large quantities of firewood or other cut wood, while the cubic meter is used for uncut wood. The nam ...

(stacked

firewood Firewood is any wooden material that is gathered and used for fuel. Generally, firewood is not highly processed and is in some sort of recognizable log or branch form, compared to other forms of wood fuel like pellets or chips. Firewood can ...

) = 0.7 m³ (stacked woodpile with air spaces) ** Schüttmeter, or Schüttraummeter (piled wood with air spaces)

USA and Canada

Board foot The board foot or board-foot is a unit of measurement for the volume of lumber in the United States and Canada. It equals the volume of a length of a board, one foot wide and thick. Board foot can be abbreviated as FBM (for "foot, board measure" ...

, unit of lumber *

Cord Cord or CORD may refer to: People * Alex Cord (1933–2021), American actor and writer * Chris Cord (born 1940), American racing driver * Errett Lobban Cord (1894–1974) American industrialist * Ronnie Cord (1943–1986), Brazilian singer * Co ...

, a unit of dry volume used to measure firewood and

pulpwood Pulpwood is timber with the principal use of making wood pulp for paper production. Applications * Trees raised specifically for pulp production account for 15% of world pulp production, old growth forests 9% and second- and third- and more gener ...

Cubic yard Cubic may refer to: Science and mathematics * Cube (algebra), "cubic" measurement * Cube, a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex ** Cubic crystal system, a crystal system ...

, equal to

References

External links

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