Things You'll Need:
- Retractable, metal measuring tape
- Cloth or paper measuring tape (see URL for printable measuring tape)
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Step 1
Look at the marks on the measuring tape. There are five different sizes of lines in each inch. The longest lines show whole inches. The next smaller lines show half inches. The lines shorter than those show fourth inches. The next smaller lines show eighth inches, and the tiniest lines show sixteenths of an inch.
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Step 2
Start at the first long line. This is the beginning of the first inch. Count the tiniest marks from the first long line to the next long line. You should have counted to sixteen. That means that these tiny lines divided the inch into sixteen equal parts, and each part is called "one sixteenth of an inch."
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Step 3
Now count every other line (the ones that are a little longer than the sixteenth lines). You should have counted to eight. That means that these lines divided the inch into eight equal parts, and each part is called "one eighth of an inch."
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Step 4
Next count every fourth line (the lines that are a bit longer than the eighth lines). You should have counted to four. That means that these lines divided the inch into four equal parts, and each part is called "one fourth of an inch."
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Step 5
Look at the line right in the center between the two longest lines. (This is the second FOURTH line you just counted.) This is the halfway mark, and shows one half an inch.
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Step 6
Hold the measuring tape beside your book. Make sure the first longest line is even with the bottom of your book.
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Step 7
Look at the measuring tape at the top of your book. The last number before your stop point tells you the number of inches. If the book is a bit longer than the last whole inch mark, you will have to count the smaller marks to see how much more the book measures. It might be eight and a half inches tall, for instance.
