The astronomical unit is a unit of length and is used in the Astronomical system of units and denoted by the symbol au.
It represents the average distance between the Earth and the Sun which is approximately 150 million kilometres (or 93 million miles).
It's used mostly to express distances within our Solar System.
The inch is a unit of length in the imperial unit system with the symbol in.
There are 12 inches in a foot and 3 feet in a yard. Therefore there are 36 inches in a yard. There are exactly 2.54 centimetres in an inch.
Borrowed from the Latin 'uncia' - the English word 'inch', the origination of the word came from the Old English word for 'ounce' which was related to the Roman phrase for "one twelfth".
The inch is still a commonly used unit in the UK, USA and Canada - and is also still used in the production of electronic equipment, still very evident in the measuring of monitor and screen sizing.