weight

1 of 2

noun

1
a
: the amount that a thing weighs
b(1)
: the standard or established amount that a thing should weigh
(2)
: one of the classes into which contestants in a sports event are divided according to body weight
(3)
: poundage required to be carried by a horse in a handicap race
2
a
: a quantity or thing weighing a fixed and usually specified amount
b
: a heavy object (such as a metal ball) thrown, put, or lifted as an athletic exercise or contest
3
a
: a unit of weight or mass see Metric System Table
b
: a piece of material (such as metal) of known specified weight for use in weighing articles
c
: a system of related units of weight
4
a
: something heavy : load
b
: a heavy object to hold or press something down or to counterbalance
5
a
: burden, pressure
the weight of their responsibilities
b
: the quality or state of being ponderous
6
a
: relative heaviness : mass
b
: the force with which a body is attracted toward the earth or a celestial body by gravitation and which is equal to the product of the mass and the local gravitational acceleration
7
a
: the relative importance or authority accorded something
the weight of her opinions
b
: measurable influence especially on others
throwing his weight behind the proposal
8
: overpowering force
9
: the quality (such as lightness) that makes a fabric or garment suitable for a particular use or season
often used in combination
summer-weight
10
: a numerical coefficient assigned to an item to express its relative importance in a frequency distribution
11
: the degree of thickness of the strokes of a type character
weight table

weight

2 of 2

verb

weighted; weighting; weights

transitive verb

1
: to oppress with a burden
weighted down with cares
2
a
: to load or make heavy with or as if with a weight
b
: to increase in heaviness by adding an ingredient
3
b
: to feel the weight of : heft
4
: to assign a statistical weight to
5
: to cause to incline in a particular direction by manipulation
the tax structure … which was weighted so heavily in favor of the upper classesA. S. Link
6
: to shift the burden of weight upon
weight the inside ski
Choose the Right Synonym for weight

importance, consequence, moment, weight, significance mean a quality or aspect having great worth or significance.

importance implies a value judgment of the superior worth or influence of something or someone.

a region with no cities of importance

consequence generally implies importance because of probable or possible effects.

the style you choose is of little consequence

moment implies conspicuous or self-evident consequence.

a decision of great moment

weight implies a judgment of the immediate relative importance of something.

the argument carried no weight with the judge

significance implies a quality or character that should mark a thing as important but that is not self-evident and may or may not be recognized.

the treaty's significance

influence, authority, prestige, weight, credit mean power exerted over the minds or behavior of others.

influence may apply to a force exercised and received consciously or unconsciously.

used her influence to get the bill passed

authority implies the power of winning devotion or allegiance or of compelling acceptance and belief.

his opinions lacked authority

prestige implies the ascendancy given by conspicuous excellence or reputation for superiority.

the prestige of the newspaper

weight implies measurable or decisive influence in determining acts or choices.

their wishes obviously carried much weight

credit suggests influence that arises from the confidence of others.

his credit with the press

Examples of weight in a Sentence

Noun Please indicate your height and weight on the form. The boat sank under the weight of the cargo. Those columns have to be strong enough to support the weight of the roof. He stays in good shape by lifting weights. I use pie weights to keep the pie crust from bubbling when I bake it. Verb I weighted the fishing line with a lead sinker. weighted the car with a ton of furniture and then headed off for college
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Yada’s training program includes a javelin and miniature soccer balls but no weights. Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Meanwhile the animals, some of whom were once deployed in America’s foreign wars, are helping break new ground with research on kidney stones, cataracts, weight issues and all the other indignities faced by aging veterans everywhere. Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024 But Frankl proposed that all people—and particularly those under some emotional weight—need a purpose that will both draw on their talents and transcend their lives. Allie Garfinkle, Fortune, 15 Mar. 2024 Isometric exercises can be done with weights or without, just relying on the body’s own weight. Kristen Rogers, CNN, 14 Mar. 2024 Will the rally in tech and weight loss drug stocks continue in 2024? Quartz, 14 Mar. 2024 This is where Pilates, as well as other activities like yoga, barre, and general weight lifting, all qualify, Dr. Agénor explains. Christa Sgobba, SELF, 14 Mar. 2024 When a stiff wind blew up her skirt, Middleton was scolded by tabloids for not properly fitting her dresses’ hems with weights. Hillary Kelly, The Atlantic, 14 Mar. 2024 The weight of morality shouldn’t be on the shoulders of comedians. Lacey Rose, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Mar. 2024
Verb
The index is up more than 6% so far this year, but when all the stocks in it are equally weighted, the benchmark is up just 2.3%. Anna Cooban, CNN, 27 Feb. 2024 Year to date, their weighted average prices (weighted by market cap) have advanced 14.48%, led by Nvidia and Meta (formerly known as Facebook). Robert Barone, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024 The report also included data from the past three years, with more recent data weighted more heavily, to better classify companies that have been rated well over time. Alex Groth, Journal Sentinel, 20 Feb. 2024 Those tangible benefits would need to be weighted more heavily toward the Palestinians, given the extremity of their circumstances. Marc Lynch, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024 Saatva Classic Mattress Saatva Latex Hybrid Mattress Tuft & Needle Save up to 20% on all Tuft and Needle mattresses and 20% off bedding including the T&N weighted blanket and linen sheet set, which is ideal for hot sleepers. Jake Smith, Glamour, 17 Feb. 2024 Primaries, however, can be difficult to weight for because there is less reliable data on who votes in party primaries. Henry Olsen, National Review, 8 Feb. 2024 Gray’s Crossing contains a mix of primary and vacation homes, Boyer says, mostly weighted toward second homeowners from the San Francisco Bay area. Lauren Beale, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024 The data then are weighted using demographic information from the U.S. Census and NHIS to adjust for variance from population values. ABC News, 9 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'weight.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English wight, weght, from Old English wiht; akin to Old Norse vætt weight, Old English wegan to weigh

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1647, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of weight was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near weight

Cite this Entry

“Weight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/weight. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

weight

1 of 2 noun
1
a
: the amount that something weighs
b
: the standard amount that something should weigh
fined for selling meat under weight
2
a
: a quantity or portion weighing usually a certain amount
equal weights of flour and butter
b
: a heavy object (as a metal ball) used in athletic exercises and contests
3
a
: a unit (as a pound or kilogram) of weight or mass see measure see metric system
b
: an object (as a piece of metal) of known weight for balancing a scale in weighing other objects
4
a
: something heavy : load
b
: a heavy object used to hold, press down, or balance something else
clock weights
5
: a mental or emotional burden
had a weight on my conscience
6
: the force with which a body is attracted toward the earth or a heavenly body by gravitation
7
a
: the importance given to something
opinions that carry weight
b
: the greater or more impressive part
the weight of the evidence is for a verdict of guilty

weight

2 of 2 verb
1
: to load or make heavy with a weight
2
: to trouble with a burden
weighted down with cares

Medical Definition

weight

noun
1
: the amount that a thing weighs
2
: a unit of weight or mass

More from Merriam-Webster on weight

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