I. weight 1 S1 W2 /weɪt/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: adjective : ↑ overweight ≠ ↑ underweight , ↑ weighted , ↑ weighty , ↑ weightless ; verb : ↑ weigh , ↑ outweigh , ↑ weight ; noun : ↑ weight , weights, ↑ weighting ]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: wiht ]
1 . AMOUNT SOMEBODY/SOMETHING WEIGHS [uncountable and countable] how heavy something is when you measure it:
The average weight of a baby at birth is just over seven pounds.
in weight
fish that are over two kilos in weight
by weight
Fruit and vegetables are sold by weight.
2 . HOW FAT [uncountable] how heavy and fat someone is:
You shouldn’t worry about your weight.
⇨ ↑ overweight , ↑ underweight
3 . HEAVINESS [uncountable] the fact that something is heavy:
The weight of her boots made it hard for Sue to run.
I didn’t know if the bridge would support our weight.
under the weight of something
Karen staggered along under the weight of her backpack.
4 . HEAVY THING [countable] something that is heavy:
I can’t lift heavy weights because of my bad back.
5 . WORRY [singular] something that causes you a lot of worry because you have to deal with it
weight of
She felt a great weight of responsibility.
families who are crumbling under the weight of increasing debt
Selling the house is a weight off my mind (=something that no longer causes a lot of worry) .
6 . IMPORTANCE [uncountable] if something has weight, it is important and influences people:
She knew that her opinion carried very little weight.
give/add weight to something
This scandal adds more weight to their arguments.
7 . AMOUNT weight of something a large amount of something:
The weight of evidence is that unemployment leads to all sorts of health problems.
The weight of public opinion is behind the teachers.
They won the battle by sheer weight of numbers (=very large numbers of people) .
8 . FOR MEASURING QUANTITIES [countable] a piece of metal that weighs an exact amount and is balanced against something else to measure how much the other thing weighs
9 .
FOR SPORT [countable] a piece of metal that weighs an exact amount and is lifted by people as a sport:
I’ve been lifting weights since I was 18.
⇨ ↑ weightlifting
10 . throw your weight about/around informal to use your position of authority to tell people what to do in an unpleasant and unreasonable way
11 . throw your weight behind somebody/something to use all your power and influence to support someone or something:
The US has thrown its weight behind the new leader.
12 . pull your weight to do your full share of work:
He accused me of not pulling my weight.
13 . take the weight off your feet informal used to tell someone to sit down:
Come in, take the weight off your feet.
⇨ DEAD WEIGHT
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 2)
■ verbs
▪ put on weight ( also gain weight formal )
He had put on weight since she last saw him.
▪ lose/shed weight
She lost a lot of weight when she was ill.
▪ watch your weight (=try not to get fatter, by eating the correct foods)
He has to watch his weight because he has a heart condition.
▪ get/keep your weight down (=become thinner or stay thin)
How can I keep my weight down?
▪ get/keep the weight off (=become or stay thinner)
I changed my eating habits so I'd keep the weight off.
■ weight + NOUN
▪ a weight problem (=a tendency to be too fat)
I've always had a weight problem.
▪ weight gain
The medication can cause rapid weight gain.
▪ weight loss
After the first month, weight loss slows down.
■ adjectives
▪ somebody's ideal weight (=what someone should weigh, according to their height and body type)
She weighs about 10lbs more than her ideal weight.
▪ somebody's target weight (=the weight someone is trying to be)
I've reached my target weight.
▪ excess weight (=the pounds that make you heavier than you should be)
You'll feel better if you lose the excess weight.
■ COMMON ERRORS
► Do not say ' lose your weight '. Say lose weight .
Do not use 'weight' as a verb, for example by saying ' I weight 55 kilos '. Say I weigh 55 kilos .
II. weight 2 BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Word Family: adjective : ↑ overweight ≠ ↑ underweight , ↑ weighted , ↑ weighty , ↑ weightless ; verb : ↑ weigh , ↑ outweigh , ↑ weight ; noun : ↑ weight , weights, ↑ weighting ]
1 . ( also weight down ) to fix a heavy object to something in order to keep it in place
weight something (down) with something
The fishing nets are weighted down with lead.
2 . to change something slightly so that you give more importance to particular ideas or people
weight something in favour of somebody/something
a temptation to weight the report in favour of the option you want