Definition of weight
1a : the amount that a thing weighsb (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
2a : a quantity or thing weighing a fixed and usually specified amountb : a heavy object (such as a metal ball) thrown, put, or lifted as an athletic exercise or contest
3a : a unit of weight or mass — see metric system tableb : a piece of material (such as metal) of known specified weight for use in weighing articlesc : a system of related units of weight
4a : something heavy : loadb : a heavy object to hold or press something down or to counterbalance
5a : burden, pressure the weight of their responsibilitiesb : the quality or state of being ponderousc : corpulence
6a : relative heaviness : massb : 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
7a : the relative importance or authority accorded something the weight of her opinionsb : measurable influence especially on others throwing his weight behind the proposal
8 : overpowering force
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Examples of weight in a Sentence
Please indicate your height and weight on the form.
Her weight is 105 pounds.
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.
Recent Examples of weight from the Web
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Now hotels on every continent have gyms with weights.
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What’s more, unless preventive steps are taken (lose weight, exercise, etc.)
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In temporarily blocking the part of Judge Watson’s order concerning refugees, the Supreme Court indicated that the government’s arguments had weight.
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But Arce, who was hired in February, disputed the federal inspectors’ findings and said the zoo’s animals are now at a healthy weight and in good condition.
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In 1985, the swan population on the Swan Upping route had fallen to just seven swans due to poisoning from lead weights.
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There’s more to gaining weight than just eating food—
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When his father brought him here in April, Adut was 28 months old and weighed 10 pounds, around a third of the weight of a healthy American male baby.
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Breath of the Wild also marks the first time the series has treated the pains of growing up with the same weight as the characters’ larger mission.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'weight.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of weight
Middle English wight, weght, from Old English wiht; akin to Old Norse vætt weight, Old English wegan to weigh
Synonym Discussion of weight
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
weight
Definition of weight
transitive verb
1 : to oppress with a burden weighted down with cares
2a : to load or make heavy with or as if with a weightb : to increase in heaviness by adding an ingredient
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 classes — A. S. Link
6 : to shift the burden of weight upon weight the inside ski
Examples of weight in a Sentence
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 of weight from the Web
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Marks above 4.0 reflect grades from honors classes weighted on a 5.0 scale.
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Facebook has also tweaked its algorithm to better understand if a story is disputed, weighting it less in a user's News Feed.
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Clearly weighted towards Gitai's own liberal political stance, but incorporating a range of other views too, West of the Jordan River is a dry and sometimes depressing film, but informative and humane too.
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The Nasdaq, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, was trading at a record high.
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The Nasdaq, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, was trading at a record high.
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Her lead might have increased by around four percentage points in a typical national survey that wasn’t weighted by education.
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Pools with health or safety violations are given demerits, which are weighted by the severity of the problem.
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Liberty Financial in March priced a tranche of its top-rated RMBS with a 2.5-year weighted average life at a spread of 140 basis points over the bank bill swap rate.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'weight.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of weight
1647
WEIGHT Defined for English Language Learners
weight
playDefinition of weight for English Language Learners
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: a measurement that indicates how heavy a person or thing is
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: the amount that a person or thing weighs : the heaviness of a person or thing
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: a heavy object that is lifted during exercising
weight
Definition of weight for English Language Learners
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: to put a weight on (something) to make it heavier or to keep it from moving
WEIGHT Defined for Kids
Definition of weight for Students
1 : the amount that something weighs Her weight is 115 pounds.
2 : the force with which a body is pulled toward the earth
3 : a unit (as a pound) for measuring weight
4 : an object (as a piece of metal) of known weight for balancing a scale in weighing other objects
5 : a heavy object used to hold or press down something
6 : a heavy object lifted during exercise
7 : 1burden 2
8 : strong influence The mayor threw his weight behind the proposal.
Definition of weight for Students
weighted
;weighting
1 : to load or make heavy with a weight I weighted the fishing line so it would sink.
2 : to trouble with a burden He was weighted down with worry.
Medical Dictionary
Learn More about weight
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See words that rhyme with weight Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for weight Spanish Central: Translation of weight Nglish: Translation of weight for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of weight for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about weight
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