by Teddy
The word dozen comes from the french word douzaine, which means “a group of 12.” In addition, 12 dozens (144 things) are called a gross. The word Baker’s Dozen comes from an old English practice where bakers would add an extra loaf for free when selling a dozen loaves of bread. At the time, a law in England enforced a minimum weight on loaves of bread, with severe punishments for breaking it. In order to avoid punishment, bakers began giving customers an extra loaf of bread to ensure that they would meet the minimum weight.