burden
1 Americannoun
-
that which is carried; load.
a horse's burden of rider and pack.
-
that which is borne with difficulty; obligation; onus.
the burden of leadership.
- Synonyms:
- impediment, encumbrance, weight
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Nautical.
-
the weight of a ship's cargo.
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the carrying capacity of a ship.
-
-
Mining. overburden.
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Metallurgy. the minerals charged into a blast furnace or steelmaking furnace.
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Accounting. overhead.
noun
-
something that is carried; load
-
something that is exacting, oppressive, or difficult to bear
the burden of responsibility
-
nautical
-
the cargo capacity of a ship
-
the weight of a ship's cargo
-
verb
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(sometimes foll by up) to put or impose a burden on; load
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to weigh down; oppress
the old woman was burdened with cares
noun
-
a line of words recurring at the end of each verse of a ballad or similar song; chorus or refrain
-
the principal or recurrent theme of a speech, book, etc
-
another word for bourdon
Synonym Usage
See load.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
burdensimple
-
burdenssimple
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have burdenedperfect
-
has burdenedperfect
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am burdeningprogressive
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are burdeningprogressive
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is burdeningprogressive
-
have been burdeningperfect progressive
-
has been burdeningperfect progressive
Past
-
burdenedsimple
-
had burdenedperfect
-
was burdeningprogressive
-
were burdeningprogressive
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had been burdeningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of burden1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English, birthen, birden, Old English byrthen; akin to German Bürde, Gothic baurthei; see also bear 1
Origin of burden2
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English bordoun, burdoun “drone, bass,” from Old French bourdon “droning sound, instrument making such a sound”
Explanation
Getting hired as the assistant to a pastry chef seemed like a dream come true. But one week and 100 cupcakes later, it’s become a hard-to-bear burden accompanied by a permanent stomachache. Burden is one of those words that doubles as a noun and a verb. Defined as something you carry or withstand with much difficulty when used as a noun, and as the act of weighing down, overloading, or oppressing when used as a verb, it’s a word with a negative charge. Now that you know what it means, you’re equipped to make sure you don’t take on unnecessary burdens (getting pressured into always carrying your neighbor’s groceries upstairs), or become one yourself!
Vocabulary lists containing burden
"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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"The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe
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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The Knight that came back in the batting ranks for the start of the 2025 summer was rejuvenated, a weight off her shoulders, batting with freedom and without burden.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
“Waymo’s goal is to be a trusted public safety partner, not an additional burden, for first responders,” a company spokesman said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
“Moana” bears this burden heavily because nearly every shot makes you aware that Laga’aia is clearly surrounded by a green screen clutching an oar while a wind machine blows in her face.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
"For every young person with a debt larger than a mortgage, any rise will simply add to the psychological and financial burden graduates are already facing."
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
We have a daughter and a son, whom we raised as normal American kids without the burden of my family's past.
From "The Boy on the Wooden Box" by Leon Leyson
The agency rationalizes its proposal as seeking “a tradeoff between reducing regulatory burdens ... and promoting efficient financial markets through timely disclosure.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
How should an American abroad balance U.S. and foreign accounts, manage currency and transfer costs, and avoid investments that create disproportionate tax or reporting burdens?
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026
There followed a succession of photographic portraits of Lincoln that would cement his image in the popular consciousness and for the first time communicate the singular burdens of the presidency.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
The differences that make humans special are treated as burdens by chatbots.
From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2026
The burdens of being “the first” didn’t fall only on our family’s shoulders.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
That deal left Warner Bros. burdened by debt, leading to deep cost cuts and setting the stage for the Ellison takeover.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Though easing gasoline prices provided some relief, respondents continue to feel burdened by inflation.
From Barron's ● Jun. 21, 2026
It’s a sea of nightmares in suits, and among them is Schlossberg, the Dennis the Menace we don’t deserve, don’t really want, but are burdened with regardless.
From Slate ● Jun. 18, 2026
The price of the ticket, which usually costs $12.90, was increased so locals were not burdened with paying for fan transportation, New Jersey Governor Governor Mikie Sherrill has said.
From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026
By three o’clock, the rain had stopped and the sky was a curdled gray burdened with lumps of clouds.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
According to City Journal, data centers generate nearly half of the county’s tax revenue, often without burdening residents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
That faced some controversy from the community who argued the city was erasing their history and burdening them with the cost to change stationery.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 21, 2026
“A life-insurance policy can be specifically purchased to provide a cash payout to the non-business child, effectively equalizing their inheritance without burdening the business or the child taking it over,” it says.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 6, 2026
The nonprofit has been going through its own planning process for months to figure out how to sell electricity to data centers without burdening other customers, and expects to release a comprehensive plan.
From Barron's ● Jan. 16, 2026
He did not want to strap it to his back too early, then have to stand around with its weight burdening him until his turn came to crawl down the cargo net.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
