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.
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Recent Examples of ballast
One where balance sheets build and their brand finds ballast.
—
Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 22 June 2025
Race ballast and series-regulation electronics are not fitted, since there are no rules to adhere to, and the cockpit interface has been modified for track day usage instead of professional motorsport.
—Alistair Charlton, Forbes.com, 19 June 2025
Evidence could include jetty and mooring post remnants, ballast stones, boatbuilding pits, temporary shelters, and artifacts indicating local commerce.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 22 May 2025
The bay, around the first bend from the lodge, is separated from the main lake by a railroad causeway built of ballast.
—Don Shiner, Outdoor Life, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for ballast
Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 22 June 2025
Race ballast and series-regulation electronics are not fitted, since there are no rules to adhere to, and the cockpit interface has been modified for track day usage instead of professional motorsport.
—Alistair Charlton, Forbes.com, 19 June 2025
Evidence could include jetty and mooring post remnants, ballast stones, boatbuilding pits, temporary shelters, and artifacts indicating local commerce.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 22 May 2025
The bay, around the first bend from the lodge, is separated from the main lake by a railroad causeway built of ballast.
—Don Shiner, Outdoor Life, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for ballast
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ballast
Noun
-
The ferrying cargo ships became high-value targets themselves.—
Craig Hooper,
Forbes.com,
14 Aug. 2025
-
Amazon's contract for 38 Vulcan launches—six Vulcan flights reserved by Sierra Space for its Dream Chaser cargo vehicle, and the 13 remaining Atlas Vs—bring ULA's potential order book to approximately 100 missions.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Per federal law, drivers moving freight between state lines can keep a 14-hour workday and drive 11 of those hours.—
Tony Plohetski,
Austin American Statesman,
30 July 2025
-
Today, Aurora is piloting autonomous trucking on the Phoenix freight lane for two customers, Hirschbach and Werner.—
Richard Bishop,
Forbes.com,
30 July 2025
Noun
-
Carhartt, a brand recently spotted on Jennifer Garner — shop her exact overalls here — has discounted loads of outdoor gear, with prices starting at $12.—
Ali Faccenda,
People.com,
8 Aug. 2025
-
Adding chia on top of that fiber load may increase digestive discomfort.—
Morgan Pearson,
Verywell Health,
7 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Council members asked the developer to address height concerns, add more than one parking space for loading and deliveries, and to rework window placements to address privacy issues.—
Ryan Macasero,
Mercury News,
13 Aug. 2025
-
The researchers measured knee pain, knee loading, and cartilage microstructure (using MRI scanning) at regular intervals over 12 months.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
12 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
SpaceX said the explosion on the test stand in June was likely caused by damage to a high-pressure nitrogen storage tank inside Starship's payload bay section.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
15 Aug. 2025
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SpaceX additionally benefits from billions of dollars in contracts from not only NASA, but the Department of Defense by providing launch services for classified satellites and other payloads.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
14 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
One example can be as simple as shipments that are missing bills of lading or origin documents.—
Forbes,
Forbes,
1 June 2021
-
According to bills of lading and other records provided to the San Antonio Express-News by officials at 23 food banks, CRE8AD8 delivered about 147,000 boxes total to food banks.—
Tom Orsborn,
ExpressNews.com,
1 July 2020
Noun
-
For him, the burden of being a gay father would be too much for his two kids to bear.—
Angel Saunders,
People.com,
7 Aug. 2025
-
But fiscal watchdogs have raised questions about how much of a burden the law will have on the city.—
Alice Yin,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
That was the point where Sunderland began to fall off the Premier League cliff-edge, and Ndong was a deadweight to hasten their demise.—
The Athletic UK Staff,
New York Times,
17 June 2025
-
Thus, Ockham's razor cuts loose the deadweight of the theory, leaving it with only the necessary pieces of explanation.—
Julius Černiauskas,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ballast.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ballast. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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