Physical Quantities and Their Units

A unit of measurement is a quantity used as a standard to expressed a physical quantity.

The following are the basic quantities being measured and the respective units used:

1. Length

Length – describes how long something is. Distance, height, thickness, and depth also

use the same units.

Some of the common units are as follows:

• millimeter (mm) – a metric unit commonly used to express the length of very small
objects like keys, and thickness of small objects like notebook.

• centimeter (cm) – a metric unit commonly used to express the length of small objects. It
is also used in measuring the height of a person.

• inch (in) – an English unit commonly used to express the length of small objects such as
boxes and bottles.

• foot (ft) – an English unit equivalent to 12 inches. It is commonly used to express short
distances, and height of all objects like trees and buildings.

A ruler is a common instrument used for measuring the length of small objects. It usually
has four units of measurement to choose from: millimeter, centimeter, inch, and foot. 
A meterstick is an instrument for measuring short distances.
For short distances, the metric unit meter (m) and the English unit yard (yd) are commonly
used.

For long distances, the metric unit kilometer (km) and the English unit mile (mi) are
commonly used.

Units of Length

Metric System English System

millimeter Mm inch In

centimeter Cm Foot Ft

meter M Yard Yd

kilometer Km Mile Mi

2.  Mass

Mass – describes how heavy something is.

Some of the common units are as follows:

• milligram (mg) - a metric unit commonly used to express the mass of very small objects
like candy.
• gram (g) – a metric unit which is the base unit for mass. It is commonly used to express
the mass of small objects like orange, egg, and tomato.

• ounce (oz) – an English unit commonly used to express the mass o

• kilogram (kg) – an English unit commonly used for measuring short distances, and height
of tall objects like trees and buildings.

• pound (lb) – an English unit commonly used for measuring short distances, and height of
tall objects like trees and buildings.

• ton – an English unit commonly used for measuring short distances, and height of tall
objects like trees and buildings.

A weighing scale is an instrument commonly used for measuring the mass of fruits,
vegetables, and meat. The scale is calibrated in grams and kilograms

Units of Mass

Metric System English System

milligram Mg Ounce Oz

Gram G Pound Lb

Kilogram Kg Ton

3.  Time
Time – describes how long it takes to do something.

Both the metric and English system uses the same units of measurement for time.

Some of the common units are as follows:

• second (s) – is the base unit for time. One second is equivalent to a tick of a clock’s
second hand.

• minute (min) – is a unit equivalent to one revolution of the clock’s second hand or one tick
of the clock’s long (minute) hand.

• hour (hr) – is a unit equivalent to one revolution of the clock’s long (minute) hand or one
tick of the clock’s short (hour) hand.

A clock is a common instrument for indicating time. It shows the time in hours, minutes, and
sometimes in seconds.

• day (d) – is a unit equivalent to two revolutions of the clock’s short (hour) hand.

• week (wk) – is a unit equivalent to 7 days.

• month (mo) – is a unit equivalent to 30 days. It is commonly used in determining the age
of an infant or a baby animal.

• year (yr) – is a unit equivalent to 12 months. It is commonly used in determining the age of
a person or an object.
Units of Time

Second s

minute min

hour hr

day d

week wk

month mo

year yr

4.  Area

Area – describes how much surface is occupied by something.

The measurement for area uses the same units of measurement for length. The only
difference is that the units are "squared" since area is a product of two dimensions (usually
length and width, which uses the same unit).

Some of the common units are as follows:

• square centimeter (cm2cm2 or sq. cm) – is a metric unit equivalent to a square with
sides 1 cm each. Typically used in measuring small areas such as chessboard.

• square foot (ft2ft2 or sq. ft) – is an English unit equivalent to a square with sides 1 ft
each. Typically used in measuring the floor or room area.

• square meter (m2m2 or sq. m) – is a metric unit equivalent to a square with sides 1 m
each. Typically used in measuring the area of a residential lot.

• acre – is an English unit used to measure land area such as farms and amusement parks.
• hectare (ha) – is a metric unit equivalent to a square with sides 100 m each. Like acre, it
is primarily used in land measurement.

A football field usually measures about 1 hectare.

Units of Area

Metric System English System

square centimeter cm2cm2 square foot ft2ft2

square meter m2m2 acre

hectare ha

5.  Volume

Volume – describes how much space (or liquid) is occupied (or contained) by something.
Similar to area, volume also uses the units of length but the only difference is that the unit is
“cubed”. Cubed units are typically used for volumes of space while there are also units of
volume dedicated for liquid measurements.

Some of the common units are as follows:

• milliliter (mL) – is a metric unit commonly used for measuring small amounts of liquid
such as perfume.

• cubic centimeters (cm3cm3 or cc) – is a metric unit for volume (both space and liquid)
corresponding to a cube with sides 1 cm each. A cubic centimeter is equivalent to a
milliliter.

• fluid ounce (fl oz) – is an English unit commonly used for measuring liquids in bottles
such as soft drinks.

• cup – is an English unit equivalent to 8 fluid ounces. It is commonly used in measuring

ingredients for cooking and baking.

A measuring cup is a kitchen utensil used to measure the volume of liquid or ingredients
like flour and sugar.

• pint (pt) – is an English unit equivalent to 2 cups. It is commonly used in different

commodities.

• quart (qt) – is an English unit equivalent to a quarter of a gallon.

• liter (L) – is the base unit for volume. It is commonly used in measuring large amount of
liquid such as gasoline.

• gallon (gal) – is an English unit counterpart for liter.

 A gasoline container usually measures 1 gallon.

Units of Volume

Metric System English System

cubic centimeter cm3cm3 fluid ounce fl oz

milliliter mL cup

liter L pint pt

quart qt

gallon gal

6.  Temperature

Temperature – describes how hot or cold something is.

The following are the common units:

• Celsius scale (°C) – is a metric unit for temperature and the most commonly used unit of
temperature worldwide. In this scale, the boiling point of water is at 100°C while the freezing
point is at 0°C.

• Fahrenheit scale (°F) – is an English unit for temperature, which is commonly used in
United States. In this scale, the boiling point of water is at 212°F while the freezing point is
at 32°F.
• Kelvin scale (K) – is a SI unit for temperature. Unlike the other two temperature scales,
the Kelvin scale does not use degrees. Its zero point, 0 K, is defined as the coldest possible
temperature which is also called absolute zero.

The thermometer is the most common instrument for measuring temperature. It is usually

calibrated on both the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales.

Units of Temperature

Metric System English System SI

Celsius scale °C Fahrenheit scale °F Kelvin scale K

Conversion of Units
People use different units of measurement in the things in which they are engaged. There
are times that the units used do not match to a person’s preference or convenience as well
as standards in certain processes and applications. Converting those units to an extent that
it can be understood directly and applied properly is important. For example, a person who
is only familiar with the metric system cannot easily figure out how tall is a tree measuring
25 feet in height. Converting 25 feet to probably in meters will help the person know how tall
the tree is.

1.  Metric-to-Metric Conversion

Converting a metric unit to another metric unit is the easiest as compared to the other
conversions. Familiarization on the equivalent values of the prefixes is important in metric-
to-metric conversion.

Here are the steps:

Step #1: Identify the base unit.

Step #2: Determine the prefixes used and their equivalents.
Step #3: Subtract the prefix exponent of the converted unit from the prefix exponent of the
original unit.
Step #4: Move the decimal place of the original measurement according to the value of the
exponent.

• If the difference is positive, move the decimal place to the right.

• If the difference is negative, move the decimal place to the left. Fill in the extra spaces with
zeros.

Example 1.1

Convert 2.5 decimeters to centimeters.

Example 1.2

Convert 600 milliliters to liters.

Example 1.3

Convert 7 kilograms to grams.

2.   English-to-English Conversion

Conversion involving English units is a bit tricky since relationship between two English
units differ from each other. Familiarization of the conversion table between English units is
important in English-to-English conversion.

Here are the steps:

Step #1: Identify the units used.

Step #2: Determine the relationship between the units.
Step #3: Determine the conversion factor (in fraction form).
The denominator should have the same unit as the original measurement.
Step #4: Multiply the original measurement by the conversion factor.

Example 2.1

Convert 30 inches to feet.

Example 2.2

Convert 16 pints to quarts.

Example 2.3

Convert 5 pounds to fluid ounces.

Example 2.4

Convert 960 acres to square miles.

3.  English-to-Metric Conversion and Metric-to-English

Conversion
Similar to English-to-English conversion, English-to-Metric and Metric-to-English
conversions require familiarization of the conversion table. The relationship between a
metric and an English unit is mostly in decimal form, thus great attention to digits is a must
in order to prevent conversion errors.

Below is a conversion table between some English and Metric units:

Length

1 in = 2.54 cm

1 ft = 30.48 cm

1 yd = 0.9144 m

1 mi = 1.609 km

Mass

1 kg = 2.2 lbs

1 oz = 28.35 g

Volume

1 gal = 3.785 L

Ares

1 ha = 2.47 acres
The method of english-to-metric and metric-to-english conversion is similar to the english-
to-english conversion.

Here are the steps:

Step #1: Identify the units used.

Step #2: Determine the relationship between the units.
Step #3: Determine the conversion factor (in fraction form).
The denominator should have the same unit as the original measurement.
Step #4: Multiply the original measurement by the conversion factor.

Example 3.1

Convert 3 feet to centimeters.

Example 3.2

Convert 45 kilograms to pounds.

Example 3.3

Convert 4 gallons to liters.

Example 3.4

Convert 5 hectares to acres.

Area Conversion
Similar to the previous conversions, the conversion table and conversion factor are also
important in area conversion. Observe that most units of area is using the same units of
length but “squared”. These are called square units.

Here are the steps:

Step #1: Identify the units used.

Step #2: Determine the relationship between the units.
Step #3: Determine the conversion factor (in fraction form).
The denominator should have the same unit as the original measurement.
Square the conversion factor.
Step #4: Multiply the original measurement by the conversion factor.

Example 1.1

Convert 4m24m2 to square feet.

Example 1.2

Convert 200 mm2mm2 to square centimeters.

 Volume (Space) Conversion

Similar to the area conversion, the method for volume (space) conversion is nothing
different. Most units of volume (space) is using the same units of length but “cube”. These
are called cubic units.

Here are the steps:

Step #1: Identify the units used.

Step #2: Determine the relationship between the units.
Step #3: Determine the conversion factor (in fraction form).
The denominator should have the same unit as the original measurement.
Cube the conversion factor.
Step #4: Multiply the original measurement by the conversion factor.

Example 2.1

Convert 5000 cm3cm3 to cubic meters.

Example 2.2

Convert 3 ft3ft3 to cubic inches.

Temperature conversion
In converting temperature from one scale to another, it is important to familiarize a few
formulas in order to get the correct conversion.

In converting temperatures in Celsius scale into Fahrenheit scale, here are the steps:

Step #1: Multiply the temperature by 9

Step #2: Then divide by 5
Step #3: Then add by 32

The formula is

Example 1

Convert 100 °C to F.

In converting temperatures in Fahrenheit scale into Celsius scale, here are the steps:

Step #1: Subtract 32 from the temperature

Step #2: Then multiply by 5
Step #3: Then divide by 9

The formula is

Example 2

Convert 167°F to Celsius.

In converting temperatures in Kelvin scale into Celsius scale, add the temperature by 273.

The formula is

Example 3

Convert 10 K to Celsius.

In converting temperatures in Celsius scale into Kelvin scale, subtract the temperature by

273.

The formula is

Example 4

Convert 50°C to Kelvin.

In converting temperatures in Fahrenheit scale into Kelvin scale, here are the steps:

Step #1: Convert into Celsius scale.

Step #2: Subtract by 273.

The formula is
Example 5

Convert 50°F to Kelvin.

In converting temperatures in Kelvin scale into Fahrenheit scale, here are the steps:

Step #1: Convert into Celsius by adding 273.

Step #2: Convert into Fahrenheit scale.

The formula is

Example 6

Convert –228 K to Fahrenheit.

Time conversion
Both the Metric and English systems use the same units of measurement for time. Same
with most conversions, the conversion table for units of time should familiarized.

Below is the conversion table of the units of time.

Equivalent

1 min = 60 s

1 hr = 60 min

1 d = 24 hrs

1 wk = 7 d
 Equivalent

1 mo = 30 d

1 yr = 12 mos = 365 days

1 decade = 10 yrs

1 century = 100 yrs

1 millennium = 1000 yrs

To convert units of measurement for time, here are the steps.

Step #1: Identify the units used.
Step #2: Determine the relationship between the units.
Step #3: Determine the conversion factor (in fraction form).
The denominator should have the same unit as the original measurement.
Step #4: Multiply the original measurement by the conversion factor.

Example 1

Convert 300 seconds to minutes.

Example 2

Convert 4 days to hours.

Example 3

Convert 6 weeks to days.

Example 4

Convert 18 months to years.

Errors in Measurement
Errors in measurement does not mean that the measurement is incorrect. It means that the
measurement is not exact due to the measuring device or instrument.
The errors in measurement are classified into:

• Absolute error
• Relative error
• Percentage error

Absolute error is the difference between the actual value and measured value.

If the measured value is greater than the actual value, ignore the negative sign (-).

Relative error is the absolute error divided by the actual value.

Percentage error is the relative error in percentage form.

Example 1

A rock weighs 2.467 kg. The students weighed it on a scale and it measured 2.45 kg.

Find the 

(a) absolute error

(b) relative error

(c) percentage error