weightless

[ weyt-lis ]

adjective

1. being without apparent weight, as a freely falling body or a body acted upon by a force that neutralizes gravitation.

weightless

/ ˈweɪtləs /

adjective

1. (of a body) having no actual weight; a state in which an object has no actual weight (because it is in space and unaffected by gravitational attraction) or no apparent weight (because the gravitational attraction equals the centripetal force and the object is in free fall)
2. commerce
   1. (of economic activity) based on the supply of information and ideas rather than trade in physical goods

      the weightless economy

   2. (of a company) having very few physical assets

      weightless dot.coms

Derived Forms

• ˈweightlessness, noun

Other Words From

• weightless·ly adverb
• weightless·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of weightless¹

First recorded in 1540–50; weight + -less

Example Sentences

Trail riding allows me to feel weightless, like I’m flying past trees, yet at the same time I’m grounded.

From Outside Online

The company aims to provide regular service for space tourists and researchers to suborbital space, with an experience that includes unparalleled views of Earth and a few minutes of weightless during the roughly 2 hour trip.

From TechCrunch

In all, the flight lasts about 10 minutes, with just a few minutes in the weightless environment of space.

From Washington Post

In the past, people have slept anywhere they could find a spot — even on the ceiling, since in the weightless environment of space there is no up or down.

From Washington Post

In the Art League’s “Breath on Glass,” Worrell uses oils to depict evenings where the air appears simultaneously weightless and heavy.

From Washington Post

“Weightless 11 times, they said—I only counted four,” he says as we walk down the ramp.

From The Daily Beast

The bullets spun him around as if he— a man so enormous he was nicknamed Taco Truck— were practically weightless.

From The Daily Beast

All of this is fun, but it feels a bit weightless and transient.

From The Daily Beast

They felt nearly weightless, for they were lifting again in a high arc.

From Project Gutenberg

Since the power had been cut off, the ship was in free fall, and the men were weightless.

From Project Gutenberg

Both of the men, laboring under more than eight hundred pounds of weight, were suddenly weightless.

From Project Gutenberg

Hurled from his position, he fell end over end across the weightless ship, but despite the blow, he was not hurt.

From Project Gutenberg

After a bruising few minutes, we went weightless, then the servos put us back on internal gravity, and the crew unstrapped.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• ethereal
• inconsequential
• trivial