counterweight

[koun-ter-weyt]

noun

1. a weight used as a counterbalance.

verb (used with object)

1. to balance or equip with a counterweight.

counterweight

/ ˈkaʊntəˌweɪt /

noun

1. a counterbalancing weight, influence, or force

Other Word Forms

• counterweighted adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of counterweight¹

First recorded in 1685–95; counter- + weight

Example Sentences

Punning on his name, the president dubbed him himayti, "my protector", seeing the RSF as a counterweight to potential coup makers in the regular army and national security.

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Her Bertha is the kindly, nurturing counterweight to Seth’s badgering boisterousness, a quality Morris infuses with just enough avuncular affection.

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A measure of skepticism about India’s value as a counterweight to China may be understandable considering the large economic gap between the two Asian neighbors.

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Portugal's Air and Rail Accident Investigations Bureau said an underground cable - which acted as a counterweight between two carriages and broke, prompting the crash - was defective and had never been certified for passenger transportation.

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Initially, Israel offered discreet support to Hamas, seeing it as a useful counterweight to the PLO and its dominant faction, Fatah, led at the time by Yasser Arafat.

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Related Words

• equilibrium