the.com/measuring spoon

means A small calibrated spoon used to portion out precise amounts of an ingredient, typically in standardized units like teaspoons and tablespoons.

from A plain compound of two old English-rooted words. "Measure" comes through Old French "mesure" from Latin "mensura" (a measuring), itself from "metiri," to measure — a cousin of words like "dimension" and "meter." "Spoon" is the homelier of the pair: Old English "sp?n" originally meant a chip or splinter of wood, since the first spoons were just that — a flat sliver you ate off of. The graduated kitchen sets we know today are a relatively modern convenience, standardized once cooks tired of recipes that called for vague handfuls and "a spoon of this."