as in balances
a device for measuring weight
I hate getting on the bathroom scale
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in hierarchies
a scheme of rank or order
a student who scored very highly on a standard intelligence scale
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in ranges
the distance or extent between possible extremes
with the scale going from one to ten, what did you think of the movie?
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in measures
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 scales
Jason Jones, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
In the gutter, the usual New Orleans blend of litter and live-oak leaves was topped by a shimmering layer of pink fish scales glinting in the sun.
—Daniel Brook, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Experiments and observations in laboratories, in our Solar System, and on galactic and cosmic scales all bear this out in great agreement with General Relativity’s predictions, lending further support to the theory.
—Big Think, 24 Mar. 2026
When a mysterious European ship was found marooned in a nearby village, its English pilot John Blackthorne (Jarvis) shared vital strategic secrets with Toranaga that tipped the scales of power in his favor to win a century-defining civil war.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 23 Mar. 2026
Harnessing the strange behavior of particles at the tiniest scales, quantum technologies are enabling applications that are borderline science fiction across various industries.
—Etiido Uko
march 23, New Atlas, 23 Mar. 2026
Anyone apoplectic about the reactionary policies coming out of Washington should rest assured that Connecticut’s legislature is hard at work to balance the scales.
—Letters To The Editor, Hartford Courant, 23 Mar. 2026
But because genre storytelling already has to fight to be recognized as art, that perception can tip the scales in a close race.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 17 Mar. 2026
In addition to dark matter, the SuperCDMS will also allow scientists to investigate previously inaccessible energy scales, and maybe learn about as-yet-unknown types of particle interactions, Northwestern said.
—Adam Harrington, CBS News, 17 Mar. 2026
Munis Raza, Interesting Engineering, 24 Mar. 2026
Girlfriend scales the diaristic, bric-a-brac charm of Janky Star into a high-drama pop monument to trying, flopping, and trying even harder next time.
—Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 20 Mar. 2026
Memory goes as high as 128GB with this CPU option ($1,000), and storage scales up to 8TB ($1,800).
—Brian Westover, PC Magazine, 9 Mar. 2026
Falsehood scales instantly; correction limps behind.
—Tom Debley, Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2026
The recipe scales up easily to feed more people.
—The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Mar. 2026
Technological innovation scales with the number of collaborators.
—R. Alexander Bentley, The Conversation, 26 Feb. 2026
New riders will be invited on a rolling basis going forward as Waymo scales its operations.
—Sasha Richie, Dallas Morning News, 24 Feb. 2026
The credit provides more money to lower-income families and those with younger children, and then scales the credit down as the incomes and ages of tax filers rise.
—Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 17 Feb. 2026
Noun
Having salary scales influenced by media opinions never felt right to me, but the responsibility is to be accepted with the vote.
—Jason Jones, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
In the gutter, the usual New Orleans blend of litter and live-oak leaves was topped by a shimmering layer of pink fish scales glinting in the sun.
—Daniel Brook, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Experiments and observations in laboratories, in our Solar System, and on galactic and cosmic scales all bear this out in great agreement with General Relativity’s predictions, lending further support to the theory.
—Big Think, 24 Mar. 2026
When a mysterious European ship was found marooned in a nearby village, its English pilot John Blackthorne (Jarvis) shared vital strategic secrets with Toranaga that tipped the scales of power in his favor to win a century-defining civil war.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 23 Mar. 2026
Harnessing the strange behavior of particles at the tiniest scales, quantum technologies are enabling applications that are borderline science fiction across various industries.
—Etiido Uko
march 23, New Atlas, 23 Mar. 2026
Anyone apoplectic about the reactionary policies coming out of Washington should rest assured that Connecticut’s legislature is hard at work to balance the scales.
—Letters To The Editor, Hartford Courant, 23 Mar. 2026
But because genre storytelling already has to fight to be recognized as art, that perception can tip the scales in a close race.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 17 Mar. 2026
In addition to dark matter, the SuperCDMS will also allow scientists to investigate previously inaccessible energy scales, and maybe learn about as-yet-unknown types of particle interactions, Northwestern said.
—Adam Harrington, CBS News, 17 Mar. 2026
Verb
Scalable and practical The system’s architecture scales straightforwardly.
—Munis Raza, Interesting Engineering, 24 Mar. 2026
Girlfriend scales the diaristic, bric-a-brac charm of Janky Star into a high-drama pop monument to trying, flopping, and trying even harder next time.
—Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 20 Mar. 2026
Memory goes as high as 128GB with this CPU option ($1,000), and storage scales up to 8TB ($1,800).
—Brian Westover, PC Magazine, 9 Mar. 2026
Falsehood scales instantly; correction limps behind.
—Tom Debley, Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2026
The recipe scales up easily to feed more people.
—The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Mar. 2026
Technological innovation scales with the number of collaborators.
—R. Alexander Bentley, The Conversation, 26 Feb. 2026
New riders will be invited on a rolling basis going forward as Waymo scales its operations.
—Sasha Richie, Dallas Morning News, 24 Feb. 2026
The credit provides more money to lower-income families and those with younger children, and then scales the credit down as the incomes and ages of tax filers rise.
—Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 17 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scales
Verb
-
While the existing ship measures about 858 feet and displaces 42,000 tons, its successor is being designed on a much larger scale to meet future operational demands.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Mar. 2026
-
The biggest change is to the fork, which now measures 147 mm across, or 32 mm wider than what is legal in the competition.—
Bryan Hood,
Robb Report,
19 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Although streamflow gauges suggested that water levels were falling at Wahiawa dam by Friday afternoon, Parker said, the dam is not out of the woods.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
20 Mar. 2026
-
Joe Raedle | Getty Images The conflict in Iran erased any improvement in consumer sentiment since February, according to early March data from the University of Michigan’s Survey of Consumers, which gauges how households feel about their own financial health and that of the economy.—
Lorie Konish,
CNBC,
17 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scales.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scales. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
