the.com/metric ton

means A unit of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms (about 2,204.6 pounds), used instead of the 'short ton' in most of the world and in scientific and international contexts.

from Built straight from the metric system's logic: 'tonne' (the French spelling, still used to distinguish it from the old imperial ton) comes from 'ton/tonne,' a word for a large cask or barrel used in medieval trade — barrels being a handy way to estimate bulk cargo before standardized weights existed. The metric reformers of revolutionary France kept the familiar word but pinned it to something exact: 1,000 kilograms, no barrel required. English later borrowed back the French spelling 'tonne' for the metric version, to keep it distinct from its own looser, older ton.