ballast

[ bal-uhst ]

/ ˈbæl əst /

See synonyms for: ballast / ballasted / ballasting on Thesaurus.com

noun

Nautical. any heavy material carried temporarily or permanently in a vessel to provide desired draft and stability.

Aeronautics. something heavy, as bags of sand, placed in the car of a balloon for control of altitude and, less often, of attitude, or placed in an aircraft to control the position of the center of gravity.

anything that gives mental, moral, or political stability or steadiness: the ballast of a steady income.

gravel, broken stone, slag, etc., placed between and under the ties of a railroad to give stability, provide drainage, and distribute loads.

Electricity.

Also called ballast resistor . a device, often a resistor, that maintains the current in a circuit at a constant value by varying its resistance in order to counteract changes in voltage.
a device that maintains the current through a fluorescent or mercury lamp at the desired constant value, sometimes also providing the necessary starting voltage and current.

verb (used with object)

to furnish with ballast: to ballast a ship.

to give steadiness to; keep steady: parental responsibilities that ballast a person.

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Idioms for ballast

in ballast, Nautical. carrying only ballast; carrying no cargo.

Origin of ballast

1450–1500; <Middle Low German, perhaps ultimately <Scandinavian; compare Old Danish, Old Swedish barlast, equivalent to barbare¹ + last load; see last⁴

OTHER WORDS FROM ballast

bal·last·er, nounbal·last·ic

[buh-las-tik], /bəˈlæs tɪk/, adjectiveo·ver·bal·last, verb (used with object)sub·bal·last, noun

un·der·bal·last, verb (used with object)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

British Dictionary definitions for ballast

ballast

/ (ˈbæləst) /

noun

any dense heavy material, such as lead or iron pigs, used to stabilize a vessel, esp one that is not carrying cargo

crushed rock, broken stone, etc, used for the foundation of a road or railway track

coarse aggregate of sandy gravel, used in making concrete

anything that provides stability or weight

electronics a device for maintaining the current in a circuit

verb (tr)

to give stability or weight to

Word Origin for ballast

C16: probably from Low German; related to Old Danish, Old Swedish barlast, literally: bare load (without commercial value), from bar bare, mere + last load, burden

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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