Definition of Mile

The meanings of mile that are commonly used today are:

• The statute mile, or more specifically
  • The international mile is the one typically meant when the word mile is used without qualification. It is defined to be precisely 1760 international yards (by definition, 0.9144 meter each). It is used in the United States and the United Kingdom as part of the Imperial system of units. The international mile is equivalent to 8 furlongs, or 80 chains, or 5280 international feet.
  • The U.S. survey mile is precisely equal to 5280 U.S. survey feet or 6336/3937 kilometers or, approximately 1609.347 meters. One international mile is precisely equal to 0.999 998 survey mile. The survey mile is used by the United States Public Land Survey System.
• The international nautical mile is defined to be exactly 1852 meters. It is used universally for aviation, naval and maritime purposes and originated from the geographical mile.