Synonyms of ballast

ballast

noun

as in cargo

heavy material (such as rocks or water) that is put on a ship to make it steady or on a balloon to control its height in the air

—often used figuratively

A large amount of ballast kept the boat from capsizing.

She provided the ballast the family needed in times of stress.

Related Words

• cargo
• freight
• load
• loading
• payload
• lading
• burden
• deadweight
• draft
• weight
• haul
• overload
• consignment
• carload
• shipment
• bale
• truckload
• package
• surcharge
• wagonload
• shipload
• boatload
• trainload
• bulk
• packet
• bundle
• pack
• parcel
• manifest
• body
• mass

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of ballast

The very dullness of it lends the alliances a ballast in the face of a turbulent political cycle. — Kurt M. Campbell, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026

And so flight was a normal termination just due to lack of ballast. — IEEE Spectrum, 6 Aug. 2026

First is to prevent their further migration by enforcing an international treaty obliging national authorities to treat ballast waters inside incoming ships that may carry such species. — ABC News, 30 July 2026

Those organisms arriving in the fresh or saltwater contained in a ship’s ballast tanks can displace the wildlife native to a region, while dredging, sonar, and propellers cause noise pollution. — Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 30 July 2026