me ‧ tre S2 W3 BrE AmE British English , meter American English /ˈmiːtə $ -ər/ noun
[ Sense 1: Date: 1700-1800 ; Language: French ; Origin: mètre , from Greek metron 'measure' ]
[ Sense 2: Date: 800-900 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: metrum , from Greek metron ]
1 . [countable] ( written abbreviation m ) the basic unit for measuring length in the ↑ metric system
2 . [uncountable and countable] the arrangement of sounds in poetry into patterns of strong and weak beats ⇨ rhythm