Word.ws English Dictionary

ton-mile

ton-mile noun: a unit of measure expressed in number of short tons moved over a specific distance in miles.

Noun

ton-mile (plural ton-miles)

  1. A unit of measure expressed in number of short tons moved over a specific distance in miles.
    • In the short series of chapters which is here begun, an attempt will be made to set down and illustrate some of the main principles governing the transportation of freight by railroads in the United States. The primary object is to convey a clear idea of what is meant by the "Ton-mile," the...1899, Thomas Francis Woodlock, "Ton-mile Cost." Booklet. Reprinted From the Wall Street Journal and Published By Dow, Jones & Co., Dow, Jones & Co., page 4
    • The Virginian Railway in the year 1911, while still hampered by insufficient equipment, hauled over 2,700,000 tons of freight at a cost of 2.1 mills per ton-mile. Its average rate per ton-mile was 3.6 mills, or less than one-half of the average ton-mile rate in 1910 in the United States. And with a...1912 July, George D. Mumford, “A Study in Railroad Efficiency: The Virginan Railway”, in Moody's Magazine, volume 14, number 1, page 40

Examples of ton-mile in a sentence

  • The Virginian Railway in the year 1911, while still hampered by insufficient equipment, hauled over 2,700,000 tons of freight at a cost of 2.1 mills per ton-mile.1912 July, George D. Mumford, “A Study in Railroad Efficiency: The Virginan Railway”, in Moody's Magazine, volume 14, number 1, page 40:
  • If the F.R. ever expands its administration to include a statistician, his figure for net foot-pounds of elbow grease per trailing ton-mile are going to look quite impressive.1958 July, R. K. Kirkland, “Into the Mountains on the Festiniog Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 450:
  • Nevertheless, since 1938 the French National Railways' passenger traffic has risen by 60 per cent and freight traffic, in terms of ton-miles, 130 per cent.1963 September, “French Railways' quarter-century of expansion”, in Modern Railways, page 189:

Forms of ton-mile

pluralton-miles
alternative formton mile

Origin of ton-mile

Compound of ton + mile, although, as with any such unit of measure (e.g., person-months, newton metres), the mathematical relationship of multiplication is simultaneously involved: X tons transported a distance of Y miles = X × Y = Z ton-miles. Attested since the 19th century in railway logistical usage; greatly increased in use by the logistics boom of World War II and the continued postwar development of advanced logistics.

Questions about ton-mile

What does ton-mile mean?
Ton-mile means a unit of measure expressed in number of short tons moved over a specific distance in miles.
How do you use ton-mile in a sentence?
The Virginian Railway in the year 1911, while still hampered by insufficient equipment, hauled over 2,700,000 tons of freight at a cost of 2.1 mills per ton-mile.
What part of speech is ton-mile?
Ton-mile is a noun.
What is the plural of ton-mile?
The plural of ton-mile is ton-miles.

Words near ton-mile in the dictionary

  1. ton mileages
  2. ton miles
  3. ton of refrigeration
  4. ton of TNT
  5. Ton Pentre
  6. ton-mile
  7. ton-miles
  8. ton-up
  9. ton-up boy
  10. ton-up boys
  11. ton-ups

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: ton-mile (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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