as in balance
a device for measuring weight
I hate getting on the bathroom scale
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in hierarchy
a scheme of rank or order
a student who scored very highly on a standard intelligence scale
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to measure
to find out the size, extent, or amount of
scaled the logs to get a rough idea of the amount of usable lumber they were likely to yield
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 scale
MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
While pointing out how quickly his investments are paying off, Ohanian suggested that the current momentum behind women’s sports is more like the scale of a Silicon Valley startup.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2025
Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 30 Oct. 2025
The next move for Cosm is scaling up into more locations.
—Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scale
Noun
Such a scenario may incrementally expand Beijing’s influence and introduce a nascent China-US rivalry in Middle Eastern nuclear affairs, contingent on the scale and visibility of any cooperation.
—MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
While pointing out how quickly his investments are paying off, Ohanian suggested that the current momentum behind women’s sports is more like the scale of a Silicon Valley startup.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2025
Verb
The thieves used a basket lift to scale the museum’s exterior, forced open a window, and used cutting tools to open display cases in the Apollo Gallery.
—Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 30 Oct. 2025
The next move for Cosm is scaling up into more locations.
—Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scale
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scale
Verb
-
The heels featured a tall, slim heel measuring 115mm.—
Karla Rodriguez,
Footwear News,
28 Oct. 2025
-
There are direct tritium beta decay experiments (like KATRIN) that are ongoing, seeking to measure the individual neutrino mass eigenstates (ν1, ν2, and ν3) directly.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
In other words, male respectability was gauged by how successfully women’s bodies were regulated.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
30 Oct. 2025
-
John Fitzgibbons, a Tampa criminal defense attorney and former federal prosecutor, said in rare cases, a grand jury can be used to gauge citizen sentiment, like whether grand jury members think a witness is reliable.—
Romy Ellenbogen,
Miami Herald,
28 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scale.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scale. Accessed 3 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share