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. 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.

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

However, the linebacker was penalized for landing on Smith with his body weight. — Ryan Gaydos, Fox News, "Green Bay Packers' Clay Matthews blasts NFL after controversial penalty: 'I think they're getting soft'," 24 Sep. 2018 At the Swedish Mission to the UN, in addition to her focus on migration and humanitarian issues, Fernström Nåtby attended negotiations on a new rulebook meant to uphold people’s rights to a sound environment through the weight of international law. — Mejs Hasan, WIRED, "The Ultimate Carbon-Saving Tip? Travel by Cargo Ship," 12 July 2018 Today, the facility makes and ships 850,000 metric tons of ammonia per year—more than double the weight of the Empire State Building. — Robert F. Service, Science | AAAS, "Ammonia—a renewable fuel made from sun, air, and water—could power the globe without carbon," 12 July 2018 Paid Off is mordantly humorous television entertainment that serves as a queasy reminder that America’s leaders have saddled the younger generation with the weight of education debt combined with curiously slow-growing wages and berserk politics. — Derek Thompson, The Atlantic, "Win a Game Show, Pay Off Your Student Debt," 12 July 2018 Johnson, a mom of four who had weight-loss surgery five years ago, didn't expect that the project would be shared thousands of times on Facebook and picked up by international media. — Amanda Kingsbury, Indianapolis Star, "Ugly. Chubby. Scarred. Hate is washed away in Indiana photographer's swimsuit shoot," 10 July 2018 However solid your body, the majority of it is water, ranging from 75 percent of the body weight of infants to 55 percent of the elderly. — New York Times, "How to Meet Your Body’s Water Needs," 9 July 2018 Suspension Side Plank Lie on your left side, propping your body weight up on your left forearm. — Philly.com, "Build strength without moving a muscle with this isometric routine," 3 July 2018 Federer swung forcefully but awkwardly, his arms moving forward while his body weight jerked laterally. — Jon Wertheim, SI.com, "'Strokes of Genius' Documentary Commemorates the Iconic Federer-Nadal '08 Wimbledon Final," 26 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Data have been weighted for age, race, education, and geography using the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey to reflect the demographic composition of the UnitedStates age 18 and over. — Colleen Leahey Mckeegan, Marie Claire, "Marie Claire's Guide to Having a Baby," 1 Oct. 2018 And weighted squats with a kettlebell in the rack position—which means resting the weight in front of your body at shoulder-level versus holding it down at your side—can be an even greater challenge. — Jenny Mccoy, SELF, "Take Your Kettlebell Squats to the Next Level With This Small Tweak From Blake Lively’s Trainer," 6 Sep. 2018 His header was however, woefully mis-weighted and bounced directly into the path of Higuain who was clear through on goal. — SI.com, "World Cup Countdown: Gonzalo Higuain Must Deliver For Argentina After 2014 Final Flop," 14 June 2018 These variables were weighted, with violent crimes accounting for 1.5 of the total because of their severity, than property crimes. — Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press, "Survey: Oakland Co. communities among safest in Michigan, but Grosse Ile is tops," 13 Mar. 2018 With Pyeongchang roughly 40 miles from the North Korean border, her trip was weighted with diplomatic import. — The Washington Post, NOLA.com, "'Where is Ivanka?' First daughter seeks control in dual role as White House adviser," 12 Mar. 2018 My hair is dense, but the strands themselves are fine, which means super heavy products will weight it down easily. — Nykia Spradley, Allure, "My Hair-Straightening Routine for Taking My Glorious Kinks and Curls to a Silky-Smooth Blowout," 9 Oct. 2018 Unfortunately, the Revo cannot be locked manually when the climber is weighting the rope. — Hayden Carpenter, Outside Online, "Testing Wild Country's Revo Belay Device," 2 July 2018 The 17-year-old has a 113.85 grade-point average (weighted) and is ranked No. 5 in a class of 875. — Terrence Thomas, San Antonio Express-News, "Finding perfection: Reagan’s Hannah Feng found success was in her effort and not always the results," 16 Feb. 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.