# Dollars and Pounds!!

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dollars-and-pounds/8773>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 18, 2000, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dollars-and-pounds/8773 "2000-03-18T07:44:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Qeelocke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e99b99/32.png) [@Qeelocke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qeelocke)\
**Post date:** [March 18, 2000, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dollars-and-pounds/8773/1 "2000-03-18T07:44:00Z")

</div>

Okay I have a few questions and here’s the first, why  
is the abbreviation for pounds just “lbs.” That has  
always bothered me. The second question is a  
math/word type deal. Three business men arrive at  
their hotel and go to the counter to pay for their  
room. The (magical mystical) room comes up to $30.  
So that is split evenly by the three men as $10  
apiece. After the thrifty business men go up to their  
room the clerk at the desk realizes that the men are  
from “so and so” business and get a $5 discount on  
their room. He tells the bellboy to take the five  
dollar bill up to the room and give them their  
discount. On the way up the bellboy decides that the  
three men would not be able to do anything with the  
actual five dollar bill and it would just cause  
problems. The bellboy instead changes the five  
dollars with five ones and thinks it would be better  
just to keep two dollars for himself and gives the men  
three. So the way it goes is that now with the extra  
dollar in their pockets they have each payed nine  
dollars instead of ten. But that doesn’t add up  
right. The three of them @ 9 equals 27, plus the  
bellboy’s 2 is $29. A dollar ends up missing. I know  
that if you go like this, $25 desk, $2 bellboy, and $3  
men it adds up right. But why not the other way? Am  
I missing something obvious? Thanks, I forgot my last  
question but I will send it as soon as remember.

```
                                                                  Sam Wells
                         St. Louis, MO
```

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![LucyVanPelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c6cbf5/32.png) [@LucyVanPelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LucyVanPelt)\
**Post date:** [March 18, 2000, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dollars-and-pounds/8773/2 "2000-03-18T09:42:00Z")

</div>

The missing dollar [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a910621.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a910621.html)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/57b2e6/32.png) [@Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Random)\
**Post date:** [March 18, 2000, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dollars-and-pounds/8773/3 "2000-03-18T13:52:00Z")

</div>

and lb. for pound comes from the latin word for pound, libra.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Ezstrete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ea924/32.png) [@Ezstrete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ezstrete)\
**Post date:** [March 18, 2000, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dollars-and-pounds/8773/4 "2000-03-18T19:12:00Z")

</div>

Lbs is also a referral to Libra-the scales sign----therefor the association with weights.

The constellation name Libra was of Roman origin—showing a goddess holding the scales aloft.