The standard weight abbreviation is wt., and the plural is wts. You will see it written with a capital W at the start of a form field, Wt., and in the phrase Net Wt. printed on almost every packaged food in the United States. It labels the word weight itself, not the unit, so it is almost always followed by a number and a unit such as lb or kg.
That difference matters. Wt. tells you what is being measured. Units like lb, oz, kg and g tell you how it is measured. A clear label uses both: "Wt. 12 lb."
Quick facts
Abbreviation
wt. (Wt. at the start of a field)Plural
wts.Period
Yes; WT in all caps often drops itOn food labels
Net Wt.Used in
Packaging, shipping, medical charts, gym logs, recipesCommon units
Not to be confused with
Ht., short for height, which sits next to it on forms
The weight abbreviation in common settings
| Setting | Form | Sample |
|---|---|---|
| Food package | Net Wt. | Net Wt. 16 oz (1 lb) 454 g |
| Shipping label | Wt. or Gross Wt. | Gross Wt. 22 lb |
| Doctor's chart | Wt. | Ht. 5 ft 6 in, Wt. 140 lb |
| Gym log | wt. | Squat: 3 sets, wt. 135 lb |
| Science class | wt% or wt. % | 5 wt% salt solution |
More everyday shortcuts like this are collected in the common abbreviations guide.
What Net Wt. means on a package
Net weight is the weight of the food or product alone, without the box, can, jar or wrapper. Gross weight is the total, packaging included. US labeling rules ask packaged foods to state the net amount on the front panel, usually in both US units and metric units.
Cereal box, lower front corner: "Net Wt. 12 oz (340 g)." The cereal inside weighs 12 ounces. The cardboard and bag are not counted.
For liquids, packages often switch to a volume label instead, such as "16 fl oz," because fluid ounces measure space, not weight. That is why a jug of milk and a bag of flour are labeled differently.
Weight on medical and fitness forms
Clinic intake forms and growth charts often place two short fields side by side: Ht. for height and Wt. for weight. Nurses may also write BW for body weight in notes, and charts for babies track weight at each visit. Medicine doses for children are sometimes figured from weight in kilograms, so the unit is spelled out carefully.
In gyms and training plans, wt. names the load on a bar or machine, and BW can mean a body weight exercise with no added load, such as a push up.
Weight units and their short forms
Wt. is often confused with unit symbols. Here are the units it is paired with most:
- lb: pound, plural lb or lbs. See the pounds abbreviation.
- oz: ounce, used for lighter items.
- kg: kilogram, the metric unit used by most of the world.
- g: gram, for small amounts like nutrition facts.
- t or tn: ton, for trucks and freight.
Metric symbols such as kg and g take no period and no s in the plural: 5 kg, not 5 kgs.
Periods, capitals and plural
In normal text, wt. ends in a period; give it a capital W when it opens a line or field: Wt. On printed forms in all capital letters, WT often appears without a period. The plural wts. is used in lists such as "wts. and measures," but in most writing "weights" is spelled out.
Read the abbreviation aloud as the full word, weight. Nobody says "w t" when reading a label.
Weight abbreviation in sentences
- "Enter Ht. and Wt. on line 4."
- "Net Wt. 2 lb (907 g)"
- "Max wt. per bag: 50 lb."
- "Pack wts. are listed on the back of each kit."
- "Rows 3 and 4 show dry wt. in grams."
If you are measuring how much of an item there is rather than how heavy it is, the right word is quantity, shortened to qty. See the quantity abbreviation.
Questions people ask
What is the abbreviation for weight?
It is wt., with a period. At the start of a form field it is written Wt., and the plural is wts.
What does Net Wt. mean?
Net Wt. means net weight, the weight of the product alone without its packaging. It appears on the front of most packaged foods.
Is lbs the abbreviation for weight?
No. Lbs is the plural abbreviation for pounds, which is a unit of weight. Wt. is the short form for the word weight itself.
What do Ht. and Wt. mean on a form?
Ht. means height and Wt. means weight. They ask for your height, often in feet and inches, and your weight, often in pounds.