weigh

¹ American  

[wey] / weɪ /

verb (used with object)

• weighs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• weighed,
  past participle,  past
• weighing
  present participle

1. to determine or ascertain the force that gravitation exerts upon (a person or thing) by use of a balance, scale, or other mechanical device.

   to weigh oneself; to weigh potatoes; to weigh gases.

2. to hold up or balance, as in the hand, in order to estimate the weight.

3. to measure, separate, or apportion (a certain quantity of something) according to weight (usually followed byout ).

   to weigh out five pounds of sugar.

4. to make heavy; increase the weight or bulk of; weight.

   We weighed the drapes to make them hang properly.

5. to evaluate in the mind; consider carefully in order to reach an opinion, decision, or choice.

   to weigh the facts; to weigh a proposal.

   Synonyms:

   contemplate, ponder

6. Archaic. to raise, lift, or hoist (something).

7. Obsolete. to think important; esteem.

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verb (used without object)

• weighs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• weighed,
  past participle,  past
• weighing
  present participle

1. to have weight or a specified amount of weight.

   to weigh less; to weigh a ton.

2. to have importance, moment, or consequence.

   Your recommendation weighs heavily in his favor.

3. to bear down as a weight or burden (usually followed by on orupon ).

   Responsibility weighed upon her.

4. to consider carefully or judicially.

   to weigh well before deciding.

5. (of a ship) to raise the anchor and get under way.

   The ship weighed early and escaped in the fog.

verb phrase

1. weigh down

   1. to cause to become bowed under a weight.

      snow and ice weighing down the trees.

   2. to lower the spirits of; burden; depress.

      This predicament weighs me down.

2. weigh in

   1. (of a boxer or wrestler) to be weighed by a medical examiner on the day of a bout.

   2. to be of the weight determined by such a weighing.

      He weighed in at 170 pounds.

   3. (of a jockey) to be weighed with the saddle and weights after a race.

   4. Informal. to offer an opinion, advice, support, etc., especially in a forceful or authoritative way.

      The chairman weighed in with an idea for the fundraiser.

3. weigh out (of a jockey)

   1. to be weighed with the saddle and weights before a race.

   2. to be of the weight determined by such a weighing.

idioms

1. weigh one's words. word.

2. weigh anchor, to heave up a ship's anchor in preparation for getting under way.

weigh ² American  

[wey] / weɪ /

idioms

1. under weigh, in motion; under way.

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weigh ¹ British  

/ weɪ /

verb

1. (tr) to measure the weight of

2. (intr) to have weight or be heavy

   she weighs more than her sister

3. to apportion according to weight

4. (tr) to consider carefully

   to weigh the facts of a case

5. (intr) to be influential

   his words weighed little with the jury

6. to be oppressive or burdensome (to)

7. obsolete to regard or esteem

8. to raise a vessel's anchor or (of a vessel) to have its anchor raised preparatory to departure

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weigh ² British  

/ weɪ /

noun

1. a variant spelling of under way

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Synonym Usage

See study.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• weigher
  noun
• unweighable
  adjective
• unweighing
  adjective
• weighable
  adjective
• well-weighed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• weighing
  present
• weighed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• weigh
  simple
• weighs
  simple
• have weighed
  perfect
• has weighed
  perfect
• am weighing
  progressive
• are weighing
  progressive
• is weighing
  progressive
• have been weighing
  perfect progressive
• has been weighing
  perfect progressive

Past

• weighed
  simple
• had weighed
  perfect
• was weighing
  progressive
• were weighing
  progressive
• had been weighing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will weigh
  simple
• will have weighed
  perfect
• will be weighing
  progressive
• will have been weighing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of weigh¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English weien, wein, weighen, Old English wegan “to carry, weigh”; cognate with Dutch wegen, German wägen, Old Norse vega; akin to Latin vehere “to carry, convey”

Origin of weigh²

First recorded in 1775–85; spelling variant of way ¹ by association with weigh anchor

Explanation

To weigh is all about judging; you could be seeing how heavy something is or if it is a good choice. You could weigh the tomatoes you're buying or weigh your options when applying to college. To weigh something can mean to physically assess its weight — is it 3 pounds? 40 kilos? 22 grams? But it's no accident that the symbol for justice is often a scale. That's because all of the facts of a case need to be weighed or evaluated for justice to be served. And hopefully the decision will be balanced and fair.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

weigh weighs weighed weighing

Interestingly, the crypto rally runs counter to expectations that the collapse of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act could weigh on bitcoin.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026

Because greys typically weigh 500g - approximately twice that of reds, only they can access the contraceptive.

From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026

That, plus elevated oil prices and rising bond yields, could weigh on equities and eventually risk slowing down the economy, they say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

To forge better social connections, weigh whether shyness, cynicism or snap judgments of others hold you back.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026

I open my eyes and weigh my options.

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen

Meta Platforms stock advances as Wall Street weighs in on the Facebook-parent’s consumer AI agent.

From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026

Our writer Robbie Shell weighs what to do with the silver service she inherited, which her grown sons don’t want.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

Siale is 6-7 inches tall and weighs 345 pounds, while Johnson is 6-6 and nearly 300 pounds.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

Tax Court, which weighs in on disputes between taxpayers and the IRS, routinely issues decisions about when businesses are allowed to deduct expenses that also happen to seem like a lot of fun.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

It's a tapering iron rod that is three feet, seven inches long and weighs thirteen and a half pounds.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman

Scientists cannot move planets around to perform controlled experiments, so they have to measure the gravitational attraction between much smaller objects that can be weighed and precisely positioned.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026

Since then, investor concern has weighed on the company’s shares, falling 28%.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

The unit had been weighed in particular by the wide gap between Japan's still low interest rates and those of the Federal Reserve, which encouraged investors to favour better-yielding dollar-denominated assets.

From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026

This week the department weighed in on Paramount’s side.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

It was September—with luck they’d have been home then—before they weighed anchor.

From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham

Compatible blood was unavailable, so physicians ultimately transfused unmatched red blood cells after weighing the risks.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026

The space agency is weighing its commercial transport options to maintain a presence in low Earth orbit.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Also weighing on crude were reports that Saudi Arabia is seeking to restore about half the capacity of its cross-country oil pipeline after the link was halted following Houthi attacks over the weekend.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 17, 2026

During Season 2, they were far more competitive, hauling in behemoths weighing 45 and 58 pounds.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

Hector asks his daughter, lifting her chin to face him and weighing the look in her dark eyes with his own.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

Related Words

• analyze
• balance
• estimate
• evaluate
• examine
• ponder