1. One of a number of marks along a line of survey, affixed to permanent objects, to show where leveling staffs were placed.
2. Any standard by which variations or performance may be tested.
1. A standard by which something can be measured or judged
2. A surveyor's mark on a permanent object of predetermined position and elevation used as a reference point; SYN. bench mark. bench mark + prikaži više

ETYM Greek, a means for judging, from krinein to separate. Related to Certain.
(Irregular plural: criteria).
The ideal in terms of which something can be judged; SYN. standard.

An arid region with little or no vegetation.
Arid area without sufficient rainfall and, consequently, vegetation to support human life. The term includes the ice areas of the polar regions (known as cold deserts). Almost 33% of the Earth's land surface is desert, and this proportion is increasing.
The tropical desert belts of latitudes from 5ş to 30ş are caused by the descent of air that is heated over the warm land and therefore has lost its moisture. Other natural desert types are the continental deserts, such as the Gobi, that are too far from the sea to receive any moisture; rain-shadow deserts, such as California’s Death Valley, that lie in the lee of mountain ranges, where the ascending air drops its rain only on the windward slopes; and coastal deserts, such as the Namib, where cold ocean currents cause local dry air masses to descend. Desert surfaces are usually rocky or gravelly, with only a small proportion being covered with sand. Deserts can be created by changes in climate, or by the human-aided process of desertification.
Characteristics common to all deserts include irregular rainfall of less than 250 mm per year, very high evaporation rates often 20 times the annual precipitation, and low relative humidity and cloud cover. Temperatures are more variable; tropical deserts have a big diurnal temperature range and very high daytime temperatures (58şC/136şF has been recorded at Azizia in Libya), whilst midlatitude deserts have a wide annual range and much lower winter temperatures (in the Mongolian desert the mean temperature is below freezing point for half the year).
Desert soils are infertile, lacking in humus and generally gray or red in color. The few plants capable of surviving such conditions are widely spaced, scrubby and often thorny. Long-rooted plants (phreatophytes) such as the date palm and musquite commonly grow along dry stream channels. Salt-loving plants (halophytes) such as saltbushes grow in areas of highly saline soils and near the edges of playas (dry saline lakes). Others, such as the xerophytes are drought-resistant and survive by remaining leafless during the dry season or by reducing water losses with small waxy leaves. They frequently have shallow and widely branching root systems and store water during the wet season (for example, succulents and cacti with pulpy stems). + prikaži više

ETYM Old Eng. mesure, French mesure, Latin mensura, from metiri, mensus, to measure; akin to metrum poetical measure, Greek metron, Eng. meter. Related to Immense, Mensuration, Mete to measure.
1. Magnitude as determined by measurement or calculation; SYN. measurement.
2. The quantity or amount of something; SYN. quantity, amount, sum.
3. A measuring instrument having a sequence of marks at regular intervals; used as a reference in making measurements; SYN. measuring rod, measuring stick.
4. Any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal; SYN. step.
5. Notation for a sequence of musical beats; written followed by a vertical bar; SYN. bar. + prikaži više

Si unit (symbol m) of length, equivalent to 1.093 yards or 39.37 inches. It is defined by scientists as the length of the path traveled by light in a vacuum during a time interval of 1/299,792,458 of a second.
In poetry, the recurring pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of verse. The unit of meter is a foot. Meter is classified by the number of feet to a line: a minimum of two and a maximum of eight. A line of two feet is a dimeter. They are then named, in order, trimeter, tetrameter, pentameter, hexameter, heptameter, and octameter.Any instrument used for measurement. The term is often compounded with a prefix to denote a specific type of meter: for example, ammeter, voltmeter, flowmeter, or pedometer.(Alternate spelling: metre).
1. The basic unit of length adopted under the System International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards); SYN. metre, m.
2. Rhythm as given by division into parts of equal time; SYN. time.
3. (Prosody) The accent in a metrical foot of verse; SYN. measure, beat, cadence.
4. Any of various instruments for measuring a quantity. + prikaži više

ETYM Latin norma a rule. Related to Normal.
Informal guideline about what is, or is not, considered normal social behavior (as opposed to rules and laws, which are formal guidelines). Such shared values and expectations may be measured by statistical sampling and vary from one society to another and from one situation to another; they range from crucial taboos, such as those against incest or cannibalism, to trivial customs and traditions, such as the correct way to hold a fork. Norms play a key part in social control and social order.
A standard or model or pattern regarded as typical. + prikaži više

A cord from which a metal weight is suspended pointing directly to the earth's center of gravity; used to determine the vertical from a given point; SYN. perpendicular.

1. A flattened rigid plate forming part of the body covering of many animals
2. A series of notes differing in pitch according to a specific scheme (usually within an octave); SYN. musical scale.
3. A specialized leaf or bract that protects a bud or catkin; SYN. scale leaf.
4. The ratio between the size of something and a representation of it
5. An indicator having a graduated sequence of marks.
6. An instrument for weighing; shows amount of mass; SYN. weighing machine.
7. An ordered reference standard:; SYN. scale of measurement, graduated table, ordered series.
8. Relative magnitude
9. A thin flake of dead epidermis shed from the surface of the skin; SYN. scurf. + prikaži više

ETYM Old Fren. estendart, French étendard, probably from Latin extendere to spread out, extend, but influenced by Eng. stand. Related to Extend.
1. A basis for comparison; a reference point against which other things can be evaluated; SYN. criterion, measure, touchstone.
2. The value behind the money in a monetary system; SYN. monetary standard.
3. An upright pole (especially one used as a support).
4. Any distinctive flag.
5. A board measure equalling 1980 board feet. + prikaži više

A flat rigid rectangular bar (metal or wood) that can be used to draw straight lines (or test their straightness). straight-edge