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Elle

ell, cubit (old measure)

noun EL-le Rare
Numbers & Measures Measurements

Also means

ulna (forearm bone)

Usage Note

Elle is a historical length unit based on the forearm, surviving in the idiom alles mit derselben Elle messen (to judge everything by the same standard). It is also the anatomical ulna. Plural Ellen.

Examples

"Früher maß man Stoff in Ellen."

Natural Translation

In the past, cloth was measured in ells.

Literal Translation

Earlier measured one cloth in ells.

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