Emily Dickinson Lexicon

OUNCE, n. [ouns; L. uncia, the twelfth part of any thing: Gr. ουγγια; but the Greek is from the Latin; Fr. once; It. oncia, an ounce, and an inch; Sp. onza; D. once; G. unze. Inch is from the same root, being the twelfth part of a foot.]

1. A weight, the twelfth part of a pound troy, and the sixteenth of a pound avoirdupois. In troy weight, the ounce is 20 pennyweights, each of 24 grains.
2. An animal of the genus Felis. [See Once.]