Ounçe, n.
n. [Fr. once, It. oncia, Sp. onza, from Lat. uncia, a twelfth, the twelfth part of a pound and of a foot, Gr. οὐγγία, οὐγκία; Ger. & Dan. unze, Sw. uns, D. once, A-S. ynce, yndse, yndsa, yntsa. Cf. INCH.]
Sense 1. A weight, the twelfth part of a pound troy, and the sixteenth of a pound avoirdupois.
☞ In troy weight, the ounce is twenty pennyweights, each of twenty-four grains, or, in all, 480 grains. In avoirdupois weight, the ounce contains 437½ grains.
Sense 2. (Zoöl.) A carnivorous, digitigrade animal (Felis uncia), resembling the leopard, but having a thicker fur, irregular faint spots, and a longer tail. It is a native of Northern India and Persia. [Written also once.]
