/ ˈkjuːbɪk; NAmE / adjective
1.
( abbr. cu ) [ only before noun ] used to show that a measurement is the volume of sth, that is the height multiplied by the length and the width :
cubic centimetres / inches / metres
2.
measured or expressed in cubic units :
the cubic capacity of a car's engine
3.
having the shape of a cube :
a cubic figure
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WORD ORIGIN
late 15th cent. (in the sense involving the cube (and no higher power) ): from Old French cubique , or via Latin from Greek kubikos , from kobos cube.