1. A unit of length used in Russia and some other Slavic countries, equal to approximately 28 inches or 71 centimeters.
Usage: historical; chiefly Russian

Examples

• The tailor measured the fabric in arshins before cutting it.
• The old Russian text specified the distance in arshins rather than modern metric units.
• An arshin was a common measurement for cloth in 19th-century Russia.
• The merchant sold the silk by the arshin at the market.