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 spectrums
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.
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Recent Examples of scales
Big Think, 22 Oct. 2025
But, at large scales, laborers (who themselves are often poorly treated) are often paid by volume and are likely to work as quickly as possible which leads to mistreatment.
—Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Of course, no Amazon river cruise is complete without fishing for piranhas—not to eat, but to get an up-close glimpse of their colorful scales and razor-sharp teeth before returning them to the water.
—Jeri Clausing, AFAR Media, 21 Oct. 2025
If that sounds exactly like the type of single-mindedness that youth coaches want in their players, De Mil was conscious of Lammens tipping the scales by doing too much.
—Mark Critchley, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
The difference between us and quantum computing is that some of our time scales start immediately.
—Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2025
Upon searching Gates’ home, authorities also found a capsule filling kit, syringes, medical droppers, medications and scales, according to The Post.
—Julia Bonavita, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2025
For Rodrigues, the big issue is how the various processes work together across length scales, from genes to cells to tissues.
—Anna Demming, Quanta Magazine, 10 Oct. 2025
However, Fred steals Velma's thunder when the scales are tilted in her favor to take back control.
—Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 10 Oct. 2025
Jordan Smith, IndyStar, 15 Oct. 2025
This model takes different experiments (borrowing against reserves, testing settlement, improving transparency) and scales them into a system that can support global liquidity.
—Luke Xie, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
How smoothly Tesla scales production without compromising supply stability or quality will be a key measure of success.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 6 Oct. 2025
The maximum level is decent, but the output clearly scales non-linearly toward 100%.
—Matthew Buzzi, PC Magazine, 5 Oct. 2025
This principle scales down to the individual level.
—Marco Argenti, Time, 2 Oct. 2025
Now, as the magnitude of the space junk problem rapidly scales up, technological responses are ramping up as well.
—IEEE Spectrum, 30 Sep. 2025
Starbucks scales back Your town could soon have one fewer Starbucks.
—Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 25 Sep. 2025
As Waymo scales up service, riders will eventually be able to use the Lyft app to match with an autonomous vehicle, too, Waymo says, though the company wouldn’t specify when riders could expect that to take place.
—Jessica Mathews, Fortune, 17 Sep. 2025
Noun
Generic predictions include the same initial temperature everywhere, with a spectrum of seed fluctuations imprinted atop it that are Gaussian in nature and almost, but not quite, identical across cosmic scales.
—Big Think, 22 Oct. 2025
But, at large scales, laborers (who themselves are often poorly treated) are often paid by volume and are likely to work as quickly as possible which leads to mistreatment.
—Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Of course, no Amazon river cruise is complete without fishing for piranhas—not to eat, but to get an up-close glimpse of their colorful scales and razor-sharp teeth before returning them to the water.
—Jeri Clausing, AFAR Media, 21 Oct. 2025
If that sounds exactly like the type of single-mindedness that youth coaches want in their players, De Mil was conscious of Lammens tipping the scales by doing too much.
—Mark Critchley, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
The difference between us and quantum computing is that some of our time scales start immediately.
—Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2025
Upon searching Gates’ home, authorities also found a capsule filling kit, syringes, medical droppers, medications and scales, according to The Post.
—Julia Bonavita, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2025
For Rodrigues, the big issue is how the various processes work together across length scales, from genes to cells to tissues.
—Anna Demming, Quanta Magazine, 10 Oct. 2025
However, Fred steals Velma's thunder when the scales are tilted in her favor to take back control.
—Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 10 Oct. 2025
Verb
Indianapolis offers winter shelter as homelessness rises The city has started offering emergency winter shelter in recent years as Indy's largest shelter provider, Wheeler Mission, scales back its overflow capacity amid rising homelessness.
—Jordan Smith, IndyStar, 15 Oct. 2025
This model takes different experiments (borrowing against reserves, testing settlement, improving transparency) and scales them into a system that can support global liquidity.
—Luke Xie, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
How smoothly Tesla scales production without compromising supply stability or quality will be a key measure of success.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 6 Oct. 2025
The maximum level is decent, but the output clearly scales non-linearly toward 100%.
—Matthew Buzzi, PC Magazine, 5 Oct. 2025
This principle scales down to the individual level.
—Marco Argenti, Time, 2 Oct. 2025
Now, as the magnitude of the space junk problem rapidly scales up, technological responses are ramping up as well.
—IEEE Spectrum, 30 Sep. 2025
Starbucks scales back Your town could soon have one fewer Starbucks.
—Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 25 Sep. 2025
As Waymo scales up service, riders will eventually be able to use the Lyft app to match with an autonomous vehicle, too, Waymo says, though the company wouldn’t specify when riders could expect that to take place.
—Jessica Mathews, Fortune, 17 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scales
Verb
-
The Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle Monitor™ Survey is an ongoing research program that measures consumer attitudes and behaviors relating to apparel, shopping, fashion, sustainability, and more.—
Catherine Salfino,
Sourcing Journal,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Once in orbit, the satellite will unfold a mirror that measures 60 by 60 feet (18 by 18 meters) in order to demonstrate its ability to direct sunlight down onto targets on Earth.—
Tereza Pultarova,
Space.com,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Counter Culture starts you off with a quick quiz that gauges your preferences.—
Brittany Loggins,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Flood forecasts Along the coast, moderate to major flooding is forecast at nearly three dozen tide gauges from North Carolina to Long Island over the weekend, including the Chesapeake and Delaware bays.—
Dinah Voyles Pulver,
USA Today,
11 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scales.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scales. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.
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