featherweight

noun

feath·​er·​weight ˈfe-t͟hər-ˌwāt How to pronounce featherweight (audio)
1
: one that is very light in weight
especially : a boxer in a weight division having a maximum limit of 126 pounds for professionals and 125 pounds for amateurs compare bantamweight, lightweight
2
featherweight adjective

Examples of featherweight in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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In his first two title defenses, Makhachev faced then-UFC featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski. Trent Reinsmith, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025 Insta360 goes the extra mile with its Go line, a series of featherweight, wearable video cameras for action and vlogging. PC Magazine, 21 Aug. 2025 Ortega’s fight Saturday will take place in prime time in Shanghai – the main card starting at 6 p.m. there and 3 a.m. PT – against Sterling (24-5), an accomplished wrestler who moved up to featherweight after losing his title two years ago to Sean O’Malley. Brian Martin, Oc Register, 21 Aug. 2025 There are a number of other great boxing matches on this card leading up to the main event, like Nick Ball versus Sam Goodman in the featherweight division and Ray Ford versus Abraham Nova in the super featherweight. Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for featherweight

Word History

First Known Use

1812, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of featherweight was in 1812

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Cite this Entry

“Featherweight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/featherweight. Accessed 7 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

featherweight

noun
feath·​er·​weight -ˌwāt How to pronounce featherweight (audio)
1
: a very light weight
2
: one that weighs little
especially : a boxer in a weight division having an upper limit of about 126 pounds

More from Merriam-Webster on featherweight

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