The modern version of that system, Systeme Internationale d'Unites (International System of Units), or SI system of measurements that is based on the base units of the meter/metre, the kilogram, the second, the ampere, the kelvin, the mole, and the candela
The metric system is the system of measurement that uses metres, grams, and litres. A decimal system of units based on the meter as a unit length, the kilogram as a unit mass, and the second as a unit time. See table at measurement. the metric system the system of weights and measures that is based on the kilogram and the metre. International decimal system of weights and measures, based on the metre (m) for length and the kilogram (kg) for mass, originally adopted in France in 1795. All other metric units were derived from the metre, including the gram (g) for weight (1 cc of water at its maximum density) and the litre (l, or L) for capacity (0.001 cu m). In the 20th century, the metric system became the basis for the International System of Units, which is now used officially almost worldwide