Thesaurus results for BALLAST

ballast

noun

Definition of ballast

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

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of ballast Diego navigated, and provided ballast, in the middle. — Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 16 June 2026 In a perfect world, the Heat make this a 2027-28 trade in July, thereby able to utilize Jovic as the cap ballast. — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 6 June 2026 Investment-grade bonds are the ballast of pension funds, insurance portfolios and the target-date funds sitting inside ordinary retirement accounts. — Dara-Abasi Ita, Forbes.com, 17 June 2026 More than 500 vessels are waiting to leave the Gulf, including more than 100 laden tankers and around 100 in ballast that could load new cargo. — Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 19 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for ballast

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ballast

Noun

From cabin and cargo space to standard tech, the South Korean automaker has completely redesigned its popular midsize three-row SUV for the 2027 model year.

— Charles Singh, USA Today, 2 July 2026
The truck sustained significant damage, spilling its cargo of beer across the roadway, police said.

— Michael Sinkewicz, FOXNews.com, 1 July 2026

Definition of cargo

Noun

After taking over a freight broker’s account, the criminals then post a fraudulent load listing offering an attractive shipment.

— Steve Weisman, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Goldman Sachs initiated coverage of FDXF with a buy rating and a $186 price target on Wednesday, citing a stronger freight outlook and company-specific opportunities to grow.

— Jeff Marks, CNBC, 1 July 2026

Definition of freight

Noun

Depending on how full your washing machine is, add up to a cup of it to your regular load and get ready to see the difference.

— Quincy Bulin, Southern Living, 1 July 2026
Like a true pal, a big pot of it in my refrigerator lightens my load, providing a nourishing meal my whole family loves at a moment’s notice.

— Ellie Krieger, Washington Post, 1 July 2026

Definition of load

Noun

Fuel rods for the Aalo-X Critical Test Reactor were manufactured by GE Vernova’s Global Nuclear Fuel business and delivered to the Idaho site in April before the reactor received approval for fuel loading and startup.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 6 July 2026
Its all-new VL45 Plus combines the advantages of top-loading and door fridges with a triple-access system that all but eliminates the need for a separate slide costing hundreds of dollars.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 6 July 2026

Definition of loading

Noun

Metadata provides the context needed to understand how workloads communicate, where traffic is moving and how AI systems behave over time without requiring organizations to analyze every prompt, transaction or data payload individually.

— Shane Buckley, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
The first stage puts its payload inside an app bundle that impersonates real components built into macOS.

— Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 2 July 2026

Definition of payload

Noun

The fundraiser says Dileo, a single father, is now facing the financial burden of bringing his son home to Florida, in addition to funeral, burial and other unexpected expenses.

— Angelique Brenes, PEOPLE, 7 July 2026
Washington has been pressing allies to shoulder more of the spending burden.

— Lorne Cook, Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2026

Definition of burden

Noun

QuantCube’s indicator measures the volume of deadweight tonnage leaving Iraqi and UAE ports, which provides an estimate of the cargo weight the ships are carrying.

— Joseph Wilkins, CNBC, 9 June 2026
As if moving his muscular deadweight weren’t a task itself for the two girls, there’s a point where Jinx falls onto Margo and pins her underwater in the tub.

— Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 13 May 2026

Definition of deadweight

Browse Nearby Words

ballads

ballast

ballasts

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Ballast.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ballast. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of ballast

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on ballast

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

gambol

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Popular in Wordplay

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes