does “ 12.8 lbs “ mean 12 lbs and 8oz, or does it actually mean 12.8 lbs, which would be around 12 lbs and 12oz?

Question

I came back from the pediatrician and she said my baby weighed “ 12.8 lbs “. Does that mean 12 lbs and 8oz, or does it actually mean 12.8 lbs, which would be around 12 lbs and 12oz?

I’m from a “kg” country so this is a bit confusing to me, and I’m not used to that dot in the middle. Basically, my question is – does my baby weight 5.8 kg or does he weight 5.6 kg?

In: Mathematics

Answer 1

It means 12.8 pounds. So 12 pounds, roughly 13 ounces, meaning he weighs 5.8kg.

Typically, Americans don’t convert the decimal point of pounds to ounces. If I was telling someone my weight, I’d say I’m “180 and a half pounds,” not “180 pounds and 8 ounces.” I’d imagine it’s confusing, but we seldomly convert pounds to ounces or vice versa, unless it’s cooking related.