Why is the unit prefix micro pronounced as myoo instead of mu?

[PainterGuy]

Hello,

I see for micro the Greek symbol μ - mu - is used. Then why don't it pronounced mu volts etc. instead of micro volts? Tell me the reason please. Many thanks for this.

Cheers

 

[tiny-tim]

Hello PainterGuy!

Same reason we don't say "k-grams" or "c-metres" !

 

[PainterGuy]

Hello PainterGuy!

Same reason we don't say "k-grams" or "c-metres" !

Hello tiny-tim,

Thanks for the comment. But kilo- or centi- are not letters of any alphabet. They are prefixes defined by the metric system society, I think. We call α alpha, not some other thing. Same can said about beta. So you see what I am trying to ask.

Cheers

 

[tiny-tim]

But kilo- or centi- are not letters of any alphabet.

Nor is "micro".

The letters k and c are short for kilo and centi, the letter µ is short for µικρv.

 

[AlephZero]

Thanks for the comment. But kilo- or centi- are not letters of any alphabet. They are prefixes defined by the metric system society, I think. We call α alpha, not some other thing. Same can said about beta. So you see what I am trying to ask.

Micro is also a prefix defined by the SI system. There are 3 prefixes starting with m: micro, milli, and mega. There are only two english letters (m and M) available, so they used the greek letter m for the third one.

You don't say "lower-case-m-grams" instead of "milligrams" or "upper-case-m-grams" instread of "megagrams". So why should you say "mu-grams" instead of "micrograms"?

 

[tiny-tim]

i believe cats pronounce it "miaow-grams"!

and cows … ​

 

[PainterGuy]

Micro is also a prefix defined by the SI system. There are 3 prefixes starting with m: micro, milli, and mega. There are only two english letters (m and M) available, so they used the greek letter m for the third one.

You don't say "lower-case-m-grams" instead of "milligrams" or "upper-case-m-grams" instread of "megagrams". So why should you say "mu-grams" instead of "micrograms"?

Many thanks AlephZero.

I am sure I was not able to understand your reply fully. Perhaps you can help me a bit to understand it.

We say mg (milligrams), cm (centimeter), etc. "m" and "c" are the initials. Is μ (mu) initial of word micro? Is there a word "micro" in Greek? I hope my questions make it somewhat clear what is confusing me. Much grateful for this help.

Cheers

 

[tiny-tim]

Is μ (mu) initial of word micro? Is there a word "micro" in Greek?

Yes, µ is the first letter of "µικρv" (pronounced "micro"), which is Greek for "small" (similarly, "mega" is Greek for "large").

I don't know whether "µικρv" is a whole word, or only a prefix.

 

[PainterGuy]

Yes, µ is the first letter of "µικρv" (pronounced "micro"), which is Greek for "small" (similarly, "mega" is Greek for "large").

I don't know whether "µικρv" is a whole word, or only a prefix.

Hello tiny-tim,

So sorry I see you also mentioned this word or prefix also in one of the posts above. I did not understand it that time.

Now I think I understand it. My wild guess is that it's a word.

Many thanks de-confusing me.

Cheers

 

[cepheid]

Now I think I understand it. My wild guess is that it's a word.

Huh?

μ is NOT a word. It is letter in the Greek alphabet (just like k and c are letters in the Roman alphabet). The Greek letter μ happens to have been chosen to be the symbol for the SI prefix micro, which means 10^-6. In other words, when μ appears in front of the symbol for a unit, it means that that unit is being scaled by the power of ten implied by the corresponding SI prefix. Hence μm means micrometres, which means 10^-6 metres. Just like km means kilometres, which means 10³ metres.

That's it.

 

[PainterGuy]

Huh?

μ is NOT a word. It is letter in the Greek alphabet (just like k and c are letters in the Roman alphabet).

Okay. Did I say 'mu' is a word? I was responding to tiny-tim's comment where he said that he doesn't know if it is a whole word or prefix. I am on my mobile so can not post any specal characters. Would request you to read my previous post again and find the highlighted word in tiny-tim's quoted post which I was commenting on. I hope it's clear now. That's it. :) Thanks for the input.

Cheers

 

[cepheid]

Okay. Did I say 'mu' is a word? I was responding to tiny-tim's comment where he said that he doesn't know if it is a whole word or prefix. I am on my mobile so can not post any specal characters. Would request you to read my previous post again and find the highlighted word in tiny-tim's quoted post which I was commenting on. I hope it's clear now. That's it. :) Thanks for the input.

Cheers

Ah okay, sorry. I honestly do not know whether (in Greek) the word micro can be stand-alone, or whether it can only be used as a prefix. Certainly in English it seems to appear only as a prefix. Interestingly, a micrometre is also sometimes called a "micron."

 

[PainterGuy]

Ah okay, sorry. I honestly do not know whether (in Greek) the word micro can be stand-alone, or whether it can only be used as a prefix. Certainly in English it seems to appear only as a prefix. Interestingly, a micrometre is also sometimes called a "micron."

Hello cepheid,

No problems. I did not know that about micrometer. So thanks for new information.

Cheers