178
Capacity
The amount of space inside a container is called its capacity. It is often used
to describe how much liquid can be held in a container such as a water bottle.
The capacity of a container is the maximum amount it can hold.
MEASUREMENT • CAPACITY MEASUREMENT • VOLUME
Look at this fish
tank. It has a
capacity of 50 l.
Capacity can be
measured in units
called millilitres (ml) and
litres (l). There are
1000 ml in 1 l.
Millilitres are used
to measure the size
of small containers like
a teacup (250 ml) or
teaspoon (5 ml).
Litres are used to
measure the sizes
of larger containers like
a large juice carton (1 l)
or a bath (80 l).
Converting litres and millilitres
Converting between litres and millilitres is easy.
To convert litres to millilitres, we multiply by 1000.
To go from millilitres to litres, we divide by 1000.
To convert 5 l to millilitres, we
multiply 5 by 1000. This gives
the answer 5000 ml.
To convert the other way, from
millilitres to litres, we divide
5000 ml by 1000, to give 5 l.
CAPACITY (litres)
50
40
30
20
10
0
Volume
is 50 l
Litr
es^ to^ millilitres
÷ 1000
× 1000
Millilitres to litres
5000 ml 5 l
178_179_Volume_and_Capacity.indd 178 29/02/2016 18:08