noun
- Plural of arshin; a unit of length used in Russia and some other countries, approximately 28 inches or 71 centimeters.
Usage: historical; chiefly Russian
Examples
- The merchant measured the fabric in arshins before cutting it.
- Historical records show that the building was several arshins tall.
- Russian tailors traditionally used arshins as their standard unit of measurement.
- The old map indicated distances in versts and arshins.
- Before the metric system, arshins were common in Eastern European trade.