balance

noun bal·ance \ ˈba-lən(t)s \

Updated on: 22 Apr 2018

Definition of balance

1 a : physical equilibrium

trouble keeping your balance on a sailboat

lost his balance and fell

a boxer kept off balance for a whole round

b : the ability to retain one's balance

Gymnasts must have a good sense of balance.

2 a : stability produced by even distribution of weight on each side of the vertical axis

when the two sides of the scale are in balance

tipped the statue off balance

b : equipoise between contrasting, opposing, or interacting elements

… the balance we strike between security and freedom.
—Earl Warren

Both parties were interviewed to provide balance in the report.

the right balance of diet and exercise

c accounting : equality between the totals of the two sides of an account

3 a : an aesthetically pleasing integration of elements

achieving balance in a work of art

b grammar : the juxtaposition in writing of syntactically parallel (see ¹parallel 3c) constructions containing similar or contrasting ideas (such as "to err is human; to forgive, divine")

4 a accounting : an amount in excess especially on the credit side of an account

has a comfortable balance in the bank

You must maintain a minimum balance of $1000 in your account to avoid fees.

b : weight or force of one side in excess of another

The balance of the evidence lay on the side of the defendant.

c : something left over : remainder

answers will be given in the balance of this chapter
—R. W. Murray

5 : mental and emotional steadiness

I doubt that Thoreau would be thrown off balance by the fantastic sights and sounds of the 20th century.
—E. B. White

6 : an instrument for weighing: such as

a : a beam that is supported freely in the center and has two pans of equal weight suspended from its ends

b : a device that uses the elasticity of a spiral spring for measuring weight or force

7 : a means of judging or deciding

the balance of a free election

8 : a counterbalancing weight, force, or influence

The comedic character serves as a balance to the serious subject matter of the play.

9 : an oscillating wheel operating with a hairspring to regulate the movement of a timepiece

a watch's balance

—

balanced

play \-lən(t)st\ adjective

— in the balance or in balance

: with the fate or outcome about to be determined

our future hangs in the balance as we await his decision

— on balance

: with all things considered

the meeting went well on balance

See balance defined for English-language learners

See balance defined for kids

Examples of balance in a Sentence

She had trouble keeping her balance as the boat rocked back and forth.
The skater suddenly lost his balance and fell.
Another skater bumped into him and knocked him off balance.
Gymnasts need flexibility and balance.
She has a good sense of balance.
To provide balance in her news story, she interviewed members of both political parties.
Temperature changes could upset the delicate balance of life in the forest.
To lose weight you need the proper balance of diet and exercise.
The food had a perfect balance of sweet and spicy flavors.
It's important to keep your life in balance.

Recent Examples of balance from the Web

The future of the landmark Iran nuclear deal hangs in the balance and its survival may depend on the unlikely success of last-minute European interventions with President Donald Trump.

— matthew lee, Fox News, "Future of Iran deal may depend on European intervention," 17 Apr. 2018
Her life hung in the balance, but not her determination.

— Longreads, "The Ladies Who Were Famous for Wanting to Be Left Alone," 17 Apr. 2018
But with its season hanging in the balance, Portland will almost certainly be leaning on its two leaders to carry the load on offense and make sure the team can even the series before Game 3 Thursday in New Orleans.

— william guillory, NOLA.com, "Pelicans prepare for different mindset from Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum," 17 Apr. 2018
The future of California's water supply might hang in the balance of this $11-million question.

— benjamin oreskes, latimes.com, "Essential California: Killing the L.A. dream," 17 Apr. 2018
The lead and the game were hanging in the balance in the fifth inning.

— john fay, Cincinnati.com, "Cincinnati Reds hang on to beat Brewers 10-4 and snap an eight-game losing streak," 16 Apr. 2018
And even though Cohen's livelihood—and perhaps his freedom—hangs in the balance, no one in his boss' orbit seems interested in taking a fall for the man who is already in the process of taking a very precipitous fall, says Vanity Fair.

— jay willis, GQ, "Michael Cohen Is on a One-Way Train to Screwsville," 16 Apr. 2018
Austria had nothing to play for heading into the final group game, while West Germany's fate hung in the balance.

— SI.com, "World Cup Countdown: 10 Weeks to Go - Austria Humble West Germany After the 'Miracle of Cordoba'," 15 Apr. 2018
Viruses help keep ecosystems in balance by changing the composition of microbial communities.

— jim robbins, New York Times, "Trillions Upon Trillions of Viruses Fall From the Sky Each Day," 13 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'balance.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of balance

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *bilancia, from Late Latin bilanc-, bilanx having two scalepans, from Latin bi- + lanc-, lanx plate

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

balance Synonyms

balance

verb

Definition of balance

balanced; balancing

transitive verb

1 a : to poise or arrange in or as if in balance

balancing a book on her head

The legislature hasn't balanced the budget in years.

b : to bring into harmony or proportion

I struggled to balance my career and family life.

a balanced diet

c : to bring to a state or position of balance (see ¹balance 2)

balanced the scales by adding a little more on one side

2 a (1) accounting : to compute the difference between the debits and credits of (an account)

balancing a company's books

(2) : to pay the amount due on : settle

sent a check to balance her account

b (1) : to arrange so that one set of elements exactly equals another

balance a mathematical equation

(2) chemistry : to complete (a chemical equation) so that the same number of atoms and electric charges of each kind appears on each side

3 a : counterbalance, offset

He served black coffee to help balance out the sweetness of the dessert.

balance one consideration against another

b : to equal or equalize in weight, number, or proportion

The good times balanced the bad times.

4 : to weigh in or as if in a balance (see ¹balance 6)

balance the profit and loss to see what had been gained

intransitive verb

1 : to become balanced or established in balance

Try balancing on one foot.

The good times and bad times balanced out.

2 : to be an equal counterbalance —often used with out

His speed will likely balance out his competitor's greater strength.

The discount and the shipping charge balance each other out.

3 : waver 1

balances and temporizes on matters that demand action

See balance defined for English-language learners

Examples of balance in a Sentence

I find it difficult to balance on one foot.
He had trouble balancing on his skis.
He helped his daughter balance on her bicycle before she started peddling.
The legislature is still trying to balance the state's budget.
He balances his checkbook every month.
Something's wrong: the books don't balance.

Recent Examples of balance from the Web

From there, Erin balanced out the tones with neutral blonde base dyes.

— devon abelman, Allure, "This Woman's Rainbow Hair-Color Correction Shows a Problem With Instagram Hair Trends," 31 Oct. 2017
Past groups available in the Poway 4-H have included cooking, sewing, computer skills, photography and life skills, like balancing a checkbook and basic auto maintenance.

— emily sorensen, Pomerado News, "Poway 4-H seeking new members," 22 Sep. 2017
Each month, this cosmic phenomenon exposes dualities, inviting us to address, calibrate, and balance our internal dichotomies.

— aliza kelly faragher, Allure, "What This Week's Horoscope Means for You," 30 Oct. 2017
The days of selling off assets to balance the budget and pay Chicago's bills are behind us.

— ben joravsky, Chicago Reader, "Rahm's budget speech filled with whoppers and half-truths," 25 Oct. 2017
Holiday will have to figure out a way to balance out his responsibilities as a facilitator while also remaining aggressive.

— william guillory, NOLA.com, "Meet the 2017-18 New Orleans Pelicans: roster, salaries, depth chart," 16 Oct. 2017
So Pearce and his colleagues balanced the creative potential of warm little ponds with those factors.

— meghan bartels, Newsweek, "How Did Life Start? Meteorites Crashing Into Darwin's Warm Little Ponds May Have Been Trigger," 2 Oct. 2017
During the autumnal equinox, day and night are balanced to about 12 hours each all over the world.

— AJC.com, "Autumn Equinox: 5 things to know about the first day of fall," 22 Sep. 2017
Online photos show large cats jumping through hoops of fire and balancing on rolling wheels.

— sarah gibbens, National Geographic, "Bear Attacks Car In Chinese Zoo Famous For Tiger Mauling," 28 Feb. 2017

Origin and Etymology of balance

see ¹balance

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1588

See Words from the same year

balance Synonyms

Synonyms

dither, falter, halt, hang back, hesitate, scruple, shilly-shally, stagger, teeter, vacillate, waver, wobble (also wabble);

Antonyms

dive (in), plunge (in);

Near Antonyms

decide;

budge, stir;

advance, continue;

Related Words

haw, hem;

dally, dawdle, delay, linger, pause, procrastinate, wait;

back down, chicken (out);

consider, debate, deliberate, ponder, weigh;

oscillate, sway;

equivocate, hedge, pussyfoot, waffle;

BALANCE Defined for English Language Learners

balance

noun

Definition of balance for English Language Learners

: the state of having your weight spread equally so that you do not fall
: the ability to move or to remain in a position without losing control or falling
: a state in which different things occur in equal or proper amounts or have an equal or proper amount of importance

balance

verb

Definition of balance for English Language Learners

: to make (something, such as a plate or your body) steady by keeping weight equal on all sides
: to adjust (an account or budget) so that the amount of money available is more than or equal to the amount of money that has been spent
: to check and make adjustments to financial records so that they are accurate

BALANCE Defined for Kids

balance

noun bal·ance \ ˈba-ləns \

Definition of balance for Students

1 : a steady position or condition

The gymnast kept her balance.

2 : something left over : remainder He spent the balance of his allowance.

3 : an instrument for weighing

4 : a state in which things occur in equal or proper amounts

a balance of work and fun

5 : the amount of money in a bank account

6 : an amount of money still owed

History for balance

The first meaning of the word balance was “an instrument used to weigh things.” Some weighing instruments have two small pans on either side, into which equal amounts must be placed to keep the beam that holds the pans from tipping. The English word balance came from a Latin word that meant literally “having two pans.” This Latin word, bilanx, is a compound of bi-, “two,” and lanx, “dish, pan of a pair of scales.”

balance

verb

Definition of balance for Students

balanced; balancing

1 : to make or keep steady : keep from falling

… their slippery … forefeet did not allow them to balance there.
—Dick King-Smith, Pigs Might Fly

2 : to make the two sides of (an account) add up to the same total

3 : to be or make equal in weight, number, or amount You must balance your schoolwork and outside activities.

Medical Dictionary

balance

noun bal·ance \ ˈbal-ən(t)s \

medical Definition of balance

1 : an instrument for weighing

2 : mental and emotional steadiness

3 a : the relation in physiology between the intake of a particular substance and its excretion —used with positive when the intake of a substance is greater than the body's excretion of it and with negative when the intake of a substance is less than the body's excretion of it — see nitrogen balance, water balance

b : the maintenance (as in laboratory cultures) of a population at about the same condition and level