square-metre

square-metre — noun

1. a standard unit used for measuring the size of a flat surface or space, equal to

1.nounA2
Definition

a standard unit used for measuring the size of a flat surface or space, equal to the area inside a square with sides one metre long

Example

The Watanabe family bought an apartment with 75 square metres of living space.

collocation: [number] square metres of [space]

The new classroom measures roughly 60 square metres in total area.

verb pattern: measure(s) + [number] + square metres

Common collocations
  • per square metre
  • square metres of
  • cover + [number] square metres
  • measure + [number] square metres
Synonyms
  • square meter

    American English spelling of the same unit

  • m²

    standard written abbreviation

  • centiare

    technical term used in land surveying; one centiare equals one square metre

Grammar Patterns

[number] + square metre(s) + of + [noun]

[noun] + measures + [number] + square metres

Usage Note

Commonly abbreviated as m². In American English the spelling is square meter.

Common Mistakes

The table is 4 square metres long.
The table is 4 metres long.
Square metres measure area, not length. Use 'metres' for one dimension and 'square metres' for surface size.

Word family

  • metre
    nounA2
  • square
    adjectiveA2
  • square centimetre
    nounB1
  • square kilometre
    nounB1
  • cubic metre
    nounB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Square metre is the standard British English term for the SI unit of area (1 m²). Square meter is the American English spelling — identical in meaning and use, differing only in orthography. The abbreviation m² (read as 'square metre(s)') is common in technical writing, floor plans, and price listings ('£3,000 per m²'), and is understood globally regardless of spelling convention. Centiare is a much rarer term used mainly in professional land surveying; one centiare equals exactly one square metre, but you are unlikely to encounter it in everyday conversation. If you are describing the size of a house, a room, or a piece of land, use square metre (or square meter in the US).

square meterm²centiare

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • per square metre
  • square metres of

Prepositions

Etymology

GreekFrenchEnglish

Square-metre is a compound of two words. 'Square' comes from Old French 'esquarre', from Latin 'exquadra' (to make square). 'Metre' comes from French 'mètre', from Greek 'metron' (measure). The term was introduced as part of the metric system developed in France in the late 1700s. The hyphenated form 'square-metre' is often used when the compound appears before a noun as a modifier, e.g., 'a 50-square-metre flat'.