onza

English

Etymology 1

From Spanish onza (“ounce, Spanish ounce”), from Latin ū̆ncia. Doublet of a, one, inch, uncia, onça, oka, ouguiya, and awqiyyah.

Noun

onza (plural onzas)

1. (historical) A traditional Spanish unit of mass, equivalent to about 28.76 g.

Synonyms

• Spanish ounce, ounce (Spanish contexts)

Coordinate terms

• grano (¹⁄₅₇₆ onza), tomin (¹⁄₄₈ onza), escrupulo (¹⁄₂₄ onza), adarme (¹⁄₁₆ onza), ochava (¹⁄₈ onza), castellano (¹⁄₆ onza), cuarteron (4 onzas), marco (8 onzas), libra (16 onzas)

Etymology 2

From Spanish onza, from Middle French once, from Old French lonce (“lynx”) by false division assuming the l was an article, from Italian lonza, from Latin lynx, from Ancient Greek λύγξ (lúnx, “lynx”). Doublet of ounce.

Noun

onza (plural onzas)

1. (cryptozoology) A cryptid in Mexican folklore said to be similar to a cougar or jaguarundi but especially aggressive.

Synonyms

• ounce

Anagrams

• -zoan, Azon, Zona, zona

Galician

Etymology

From Latin uncia (“unit, ¹⁄₁₂ Roman pound”). As an English unit, a calque of ounce. Cognate with Spanish onza, Portuguese onça, Catalan unça, French once, Italian oncia, and English ounce and inch.

Noun

onza f (plural onzas)

1. English or American ounce, a unit of mass equivalent to 28.35 g
2. (historical) onza, Spanish ounce, a traditional unit of mass equivalent to about 28.76 g

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Spain) /ˈonθa/ [ˈõn̟.θa]
• IPA^(key): (Latin America, Philippines) /ˈonsa/ [ˈõn.sa]

• Audio (Colombia):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -onθa
• Rhymes: -onsa
• Syllabification: on‧za

Etymology 1

Inherited from Latin uncia (“unit, ¹⁄₁₂ Roman pound”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *óynos (“one”). As an English unit, a calque of ounce. Cognate with Galician onza, Portuguese onça, Catalan unça, French once, Italian oncia, and English ounce and inch.

Noun

onza f (plural onzas)

1. English or American ounce (a unit of mass equivalent to 28.35 g or 31.1 g)
2. Clipping of onza líquida, the English or American fluid ounce (a unit of liquid volume equivalent to 28.4 or 29.6 mL)
3. (historical) onza, Spanish ounce (a traditional unit of mass equivalent to about 28.76 g)

Coordinate terms

• (English unit of mass): grano (²⁄₈₇₅ or ¹⁄₄₈₀ onza), libra (16 onzas)
• (English unit of liquid volume): gill (4 or 5 onzas), pinta (16 or 20 onzas), cuarto (32 or 40 onzas), galón (128 or 160 onzas), barril (4,032 onzas)
• (Spanish unit of mass): grano (¹⁄₅₇₆ onza), tomín (¹⁄₄₈ onza), escrúpulo (¹⁄₂₄ onza), adarme (¹⁄₁₆ onza), ochava (¹⁄₈ onza), castellano (¹⁄₆ onza), cuarterón (4 onzas), marco (8 onzas), libra (16 onzas)

Derived terms

• onza líquida
• onza troy

 

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Middle French once, from Old French lonce (“lynx”) by false division assuming the l was an article, from Italian lonza, from Latin lynx, from Ancient Greek λύγξ (lúnx, “lynx”). Doublet of lince.

Noun

onza f (plural onzas)

1. (dated) ounce (any large wild feline)
2. Synonym of leopardo de las nieves
3. (Cryptozoology, Mexico) onza (a cryptid feline in Mexican folklore)

Further reading

• “onza”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2023 November 28