# weight

Pronunciation: US say "WAYT" /weɪt/; UK

## Noun

1. How heavy someone or something is; the amount of matter it contains, often given as a measured quantity such as kilograms, pounds or carats.
   - Simple: How heavy a person or thing is, often given as a number of kilograms or pounds.
   - _The recipe lists the weight of each ingredient in grams._
   - _Scientists recorded the sample's weight before and after drying it._
2. A heavy object, such as a barbell or plate, lifted to build strength.
   - Simple: A heavy object, like a barbell or metal plate, that you lift to build muscle.
   - _The coach told her to start with a lighter weight before progressing._
   - _Lifting weights regularly improved his posture and bone density._
3. The downward force that gravity exerts on an object, pulling it toward the earth or another large body.
   - Simple: The pull of gravity on an object, which makes it feel heavy.
   - _Underwater, a diver's weight is partly offset by the upward push of the water._
   - _An astronaut's weight decreases as the spacecraft moves away from Earth._
4. Importance or influence: the influence that a person, argument or factor has, or the importance that someone gives to it.
   - Simple: How important or powerful someone or something is, or how much it counts when deciding.
   - _The senator's endorsement gave the proposal real weight in the debate._
   - _Years of experience lend weight to her recommendations._
5. The pressure or burden of something difficult, such as worry or responsibility.
   - Simple: The pressure or burden of something hard to deal with, such as worry or responsibility.
   - _The weight of grief pressed on her for months after the loss._
   - _He finally shared the weight of the secret he had carried for years._
7. A division of competitors grouped by body mass, as in boxing or wrestling.
   - Simple: A group of athletes who weigh about the same, used in sports like boxing.
   - _After bulking up, the fighter moved into a heavier weight._
   - _She has held world titles at three different weights during her long career._
8. An object placed on or attached to something in order to make it heavier.
   - Simple: A heavy object you put on something to hold it down or make it heavier.
   - _The tailor sewed a tiny weight into the hem to make the curtain hang straight._
   - _Divers attach a weight to their belts to help them sink._
10. A variable that multiplies a value to adjust how much it counts in a calculation.
   - Simple: A number used to multiply a value so some values count more than others.
   - _The model assigns a higher weight to recent observations._
   - _Survey statisticians apply weights to correct for underrepresented groups._
11. An object of known mass used on a balance as a reference for measuring the mass of something else.
   - Simple: An object of known mass, used on a balance scale to measure the mass of other things.
   - _The chemist added a one-gram weight to balance the sample._
   - _Old market scales came with a full set of iron weights._
12. The mass of atoms or molecules, as in atomic weight or molecular weight, used in restricted scientific contexts.
   - Simple: How heavy tiny things like atoms and molecules are, measured for science.
   - _The molecular weight of water is roughly eighteen._
   - _She looked up the atomic weight of oxygen in the periodic table._
15. A rating of a lubricant's viscosity.
   - Simple: A number that shows how thick or thin an oil is.
   - _Mechanics pick an oil weight suited to the local climate._
   - _The owner's manual lists the right weight of oil for the engine and may suggest a thinner one for very cold climates._
17. The thickness of a strand of yarn.
   - Simple: How thick or thin a piece of yarn is.
   - _Choose a yarn whose weight matches the gauge given on the pattern._
   - _Heavier weights work up quickly into warm winter blankets._
18. The boldness of a font, or how thick the strokes of its letters are.
   - Simple: How thick or bold the lines of the letters are in a font.
   - _The designer paired a light weight for the body text with a bold one for headings._
   - _Variable fonts let you adjust the weight smoothly with a slider._
20. In drawing, painting, and design, how thick a ruled line or brushstroke is compared with others.
   - Simple: How thick or thin a drawn or painted line looks.
   - _She varied the weight of each line to suggest depth._
   - _A good illustrator varies the weight of each stroke, keeping outer contours bold and interior details fine._
21. A quantity of drugs, often illegal, handled in shipment or trade. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A large amount of drugs, often illegal, being moved or sold.
   - _Police suspected the crew of running weight up the coast._
   - _He had been moving weight for the cartel for years._
22. The visual impression that a depicted form possesses mass or heaviness.
   - Simple: In art, the feeling that something looks heavy or solid.
   - _The sculptor's careful shadows lend the drawing real weight._
   - _Bold, dense brushwork gives these clouds a surprising weight._
23. The thickness and opacity of applied paint.
   - Simple: How thick a layer of paint is and how completely it hides the surface or colors beneath it.
   - _Up close, the weight of the paint is obvious: it sits so thick on the canvas that none of the weave shows through._
   - _Thin washes lack the weight of bold impasto strokes._

## Verb

6. To assign a multiplier to each figure so that some count more than others in the result.
   - Simple: To give each number a value that decides how much it counts.
   - _Analysts weight each region by its population._
   - _The researchers weighted the responses to match the national profile._
9. To make something heavier by adding a heavy object or material to it.
   - Simple: To make something heavier by adding a heavy object to it.
   - _Before baking the crust, line it with foil and weight it with dried beans so the bottom stays flat._
   - _The designer weighted the base of the lamp to stop it from tipping over._
13. To load someone down with a heavy burden, physical or emotional, or to oppress them.
   - Simple: To put a heavy load or trouble on someone.
   - _She came home each night weighted with worries about the people she had laid off._
   - _By her second year in charge, she felt weighted with decisions that no one else on the team wanted to make._
14. To bias something so that it favors one side or outcome.
   - Simple: To tip something so that it favors one side.
   - _Vague criteria can weight the decision toward insiders._
   - _The editors weighted their coverage in favor of one candidate._
16. To handicap a racehorse by assigning it a specified weight to carry.
   - Simple: To give a racehorse a set weight to carry so the race is fair.
   - _The handicapper weighted the champion to give its rivals a chance._
   - _Handicappers weight each runner according to its past performance._
19. To apply a specific amount of force to a throw, kick, or hit so that it travels as intended.
   - Simple: To put a certain amount of force into a throw, kick, or hit.
   - _The quarterback weighted the throw to drop just over the defender._
   - _Good golfers weight each putt to die at the hole._

## Noun

24. Money, as spoken of among criminals. *(dated)*
   - Simple: Money, in the old slang of criminals.

## Other meanings

- (noun) The resistance a machine acts against, rather than the power that drives it.
- (verb) To load fabric with barite or similar minerals to increase its weight.
- (noun) In topology, the smallest cardinality among all bases of a topological space.

## Origin

From Middle English weight, from Old English wiht, ġewiht ("weight"), from Proto-Germanic *wihtiz, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *weǵʰ- ("to move, pull, draw, drive"). It is essentially "weigh" plus an abstract noun suffix, and is related to Dutch gewicht and German Gewicht ("weight").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/weight (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).