weight

noun

\ ˈwāt

Definition of weight

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : 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

2a : 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

3a : 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

4a : something heavy : load

b : a heavy object to hold or press something down or to counterbalance

5a : burden, pressure the weight of their responsibilities

b : the quality or state of being ponderous

c : corpulence

6a : 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

7a : 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

verb

weighted; weighting; weights

Definition of weight (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : to oppress with a burden weighted down with cares

2a : to load or make heavy with or as if with a weight

b : to increase in heaviness by adding an ingredient

3a : weigh sense 1

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 classes— A. S. Link

6 : to shift the burden of weight upon weight the inside ski

Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about weight

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Choose the Right Synonym for weight

Noun

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

Arya is currently headed straight for King's Landing to cross Cersei's name off her kill list, but Jaime might beat her to it if the valonqar theory holds any weight. — Ineye Komonibo, Marie Claire, "Will Sansa Take the Iron Throne in 'Game of Thrones'?," 7 May 2019 While polished, voluminous curls topped the list of 2018's buzziest trends, Dion proves the style still holds some serious weight in the new year. — Jenna Rennert, Vogue, "Céline Dion Shuts Down Paris With 70s Disco Curls and a Moulin Rouge-Worthy Mini Dress," 25 Jan. 2019 Why this matters: Google Assistant news always piques our interest, but this week’s announcement holds even more weight. — Michael Simon, PCWorld, "Google preps for Pixel 3, smart display launch with a visual Assistant makeover," 3 Oct. 2018 If your container garden is located on a balcony or deck, be sure to check how much weight the structure will safely hold. — The Editors, Good Housekeeping, "Everything You Need to Know About Container Gardening," 13 Aug. 2018 The couple’s other children, Drake, Ella, Duke, and Emmie Kay are pulling their weight as well. — Megan Stein, Country Living, "Joanna Gaines Says There’s ‘Literally a Sign-Up Sheet’ for People to Hold Baby Crew," 30 Mar. 2019 His weight dropped to 166 pounds within four months. — Mark Barna, Discover Magazine, "Not So Fast," 24 Sep. 2018 That this report comes from Trump’s White House only gives it more weight. — Umair Irfan, Vox, "The National Climate Assessment shows that the costs of doing nothing on climate change are immense.," 26 Nov. 2018 Some are gimmick weight loss tricks, and others are scientifically proven to be ineffective. — USA TODAY, "The biggest exercise fad the year you were born," 12 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Baby Sussex was born on Monday—a healthy baby boy weighting 7lbs 3oz, reportedly with a hospital birth rather than a home birth. — Lucy Wood, Marie Claire, "Oprah Already Has the Sweetest Gift Ready for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Son," 7 May 2019 But so is the sense that some fundamental promise of America has been lost in the name of progress weighted too heavily toward one side of our capitalist ledger. — Todd Vanderwerff, Vox, "Gritty’s evolution from googly-eyed hockey mascot to meme to leftist avatar, explained," 24 Dec. 2018 The law has yet to fully kick in, but Rubio seemed to acknowledge one of the major complaints about it, the permanent benefits of which are weighted to corporations in the hope of growing wages and jobs. — Z. Byron Wolf, CNN, "Two politicians just told the truth about taxes and health care," 2 May 2018 Advertising The couple were beneficiaries of the Republican tax-cut law that Inslee and other Democrats have criticized for being weighted toward wealthier Americans. — Jim Brunner, The Seattle Times, "Jay Inslee goes on ‘Fox and Friends’ to release tax returns, challenges Trump to do same," 29 Mar. 2019 The scene is weighted by the knowledge of its—and its character’s—imminent destruction. — Sam Sacks, WSJ, "Fiction: A Memorial Tablet in Viale Cavour," 21 Dec. 2018 The Nasdaq composite, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, slid 2.5 percent to 7,642.67. — Elaine Kurtenbach, The Seattle Times, "Asian shares sink, tracking Friday’s retreat on Wall Street," 24 Mar. 2019 The results were weighted to reflect the demographics of the country. — Brian Resnick, Vox, "America’s teens are extremely stressed out about school shootings," 31 Oct. 2018 But what’s really been shown here is felony hypocrisy—a system set up to penalize rinky-dink payoffs to desperate players and parents and middlemen, while coaches, conferences and universities drive off in a Brinks truck weighted down by billions. — Jason Gay, WSJ, "The End of the NCAA Illusion," 18 Oct. 2018

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.