— weighter , n.
/wayt/ , n.
1. the amount or quantity of heaviness or mass; amount a thing weighs.
2. Physics. the force that gravitation exerts upon a body, equal to the mass of the body times the local acceleration of gravity: commonly taken, in a region of constant gravitational acceleration, as a measure of mass.
3. a system of units for expressing heaviness or mass: avoirdupois weight.
4. a unit of heaviness or mass: The pound is a common weight in English-speaking countries.
5. a body of determinate mass, as of metal, for using on a balance or scale in weighing objects, substances, etc.
6. a specific quantity of a substance that is determined by weighing or that weighs a fixed amount: a half-ounce weight of gold dust.
7. any heavy load, mass, or object: Put down that weight and rest your arms.
8. an object used or useful solely because of its heaviness: the weights of a clock.
9. a mental or moral burden, as of care, sorrow, or responsibility: Knowing you are safe takes a weight off my mind.
10. importance, moment, consequence, or effective influence: an opinion of great weight.
11. Statistics. a measure of the relative importance of an item in a statistical population.
12. (of clothing, textiles, etc.)
a. relative heaviness or thickness as related to warmth or to seasonal use (often used in combination): a winter-weight jacket.
b. relative heaviness or thickness as related to use: a bolt of coat-weight woolen cloth.
13. Print. (of type) the degree of blackness or boldness.
14. (esp. in boxing) a division or class to which a contestant belongs according to how much he weighs: two brothers who fight professionally in the same weight.
15. the total amount the jockey, saddle, and leads must weigh on a racehorse during a race, according to the conditions of the race: Jacinto has a weight of 122 pounds in the seventh race.
16. the stress or accent value given a sound, syllable, or word.
17. by weight , according to measurement of heaviness or mass: Rates are determined by weight.
18. carry weight , to have importance or significance; influence: Her opinion is certain to carry weight.
19. pull one's weight , to contribute one's rightful share of work to a project or job: We will finish in time if we each pull our weight. Also, pull one's own weight .
20. throw one's weight around or about , to use one's power and influence, esp. beyond the bounds of propriety, to secure some personal gain.
v.t.
21. to add weight to; load with additional weight: to weight sacks before dumping them overboard.
22. to load (fabrics, threads, etc.) with mineral or other matter to increase the weight or bulk.
23. to burden with or as if with weight (often fol. by down ): Financial worries have weighted that family down for years.
24. Statistics. to give a statistical weight to.
25. to bias or slant toward a particular goal or direction; manipulate: The teacher weighted the test so students who had read both books would make the highest marks.
26. to assign (a racehorse) a specific weight to carry in a race: The handicapper weighted Dapper Dan with 128 pounds.
[ bef. 1000; ME (n.); OE wiht (c. D wicht, G Gewicht ); see WEIGH, -TH 1 ]
Syn. 10. effect, power, efficacy, import, significance. 23. oppress, encumber, saddle, load.