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By the end of this topic, you should be able to:
The metric system is the standard system of measurement used in science and in most countries around the world. Every unit in the metric system is based on powers of 10 (10, 100, 1000…), which makes converting between units straightforward — you only ever multiply or divide by these numbers.
There are five main types of measurement you need to know for this topic:
| Type | What it measures | Units you need to know |
|---|---|---|
| Length | How long or far something is | mm, cm, m, km |
| Area | The amount of flat surface something covers | mm², cm², m², km² |
| Volume | The amount of 3D space something takes up | mm³, cm³, m³ |
| Capacity | How much liquid a container can hold | ml, l (litres) |
| Mass | How heavy something is | g, kg |
Length tells us how long, tall, or wide something is.
The units in order from smallest to largest are:
mm → cm → m → km (millimetres → centimetres → metres → kilometres)
Here are the key conversion facts you must memorise:
You can picture this as a number line going left to right:
mm ——(÷10)——▶ cm ——(÷100)——▶ m ——(÷1000)——▶ km
mm ◀——(×10)—— cm ◀——(×100)—— m ◀——(×1000)—— km
Mass tells us how heavy an object is.
The units you need are:
g → kg (grams → kilograms)
Key conversion fact:
g ——(÷1000)——▶ kg
g ◀——(×1000)—— kg
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