scale

¹ American  

[skayl] / skeɪl /

noun

1. Zoology.

   1. one of the thin, flat, horny plates forming the covering of certain animals, as snakes, lizards, and pangolins.

   2. one of the hard, bony or dentinal plates, either flat or denticulate, forming the covering of certain other animals, as fishes.

2. any thin, platelike piece, lamina, or flake that peels off from a surface, as from the skin.

3. Botany.

   1. Also called bud scale. a rudimentary body, usually a specialized leaf and often covered with hair, wax, or resin, enclosing an immature leaf bud.

   2. a thin, scarious or membranous part of a plant, as a bract of a catkin.

4. scale insect.

5. a coating or incrustation, as on the inside of a boiler, formed by the precipitation of salts from the water.

6. Metallurgy. Often scales.

   1. an oxide, especially an iron oxide, occurring in a scaly form on the surface of metal brought to a high temperature.

   2. Also called mill scale. such scale formed on iron or steel during hot-rolling.

7. scales,

   1. a cause of blindness or ignorance, as regarding the true nature of a person, situation, etc..

      You're infatuated with her now, but the scales will soon fall from your eyes.

   2. Bible. an unspecified affliction that caused Paul to become temporarily blind. Acts 9:18.

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verb (used with object)

scaled, scaling

1. to remove the scales or scale from.

   to scale a fish.

2. to remove in scales or thin layers.

3. to cover with an incrustation or scale.

4. to skip, as a stone over water.

5. Dentistry. to remove (calculus) from the teeth with instruments.

verb (used without object)

scaled, scaling

1. to come off in scales.

2. to shed scales.

3. to become coated with scale, as the inside of a boiler.

scale ² American  

[skayl] / skeɪl /

noun

1. Often scales. a balance or any of various other instruments or devices for weighing.

   We gave the parents a baby scale. The butcher placed the meat on the scales.

2. Also called scalepan. either of the pans or dishes of a balance.

3. Astronomy, Astrology. Scales, the constellation or sign of Libra; Balance.

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verb (used with object)

scaled, scaling

1. to weigh in or as if in scales.

2. to have a weight of.

idioms

1. tip the scale / scales,

   1. to weigh.

      He tips the scales at 190 lbs.

   2. to turn the trend of favor, control, etc..

      The present crisis should tip the scales for our candidate.

2. turn the scale / scales, to decide in favor of one side or faction; determine the outcome.

   It would take a miracle to turn the scales for us now.

scale ³ American  

[skayl] / skeɪl /

noun

1. a succession or progression of steps or degrees; graduated series.

   the scale of taxation; the social scale.

2. a series of marks laid down at determinate distances, as along a line, for purposes of measurement or computation.

   the scale of a thermometer.

3. a graduated line, as on a map, representing proportionate size.

4. a table of graduated rates, as of prices or wages.

   These unions use different scales.

5. a wage that conforms to such rates.

   How much is scale?

6. Also called union scale. a wage fixed by contract that is the minimum permitted to be paid to or accepted by a particular category of employed persons.

   All actors and musicians for the performance, including the stars, are working for scale.

7. an instrument with graduated spaces, as for measuring.

8. the proportion that a representation of an object bears to the object itself.

   a model on a scale of one inch to one foot.

9. the ratio of distances or sometimes of areas on a map to the corresponding values on the earth.

10. a certain relative or proportionate size or extent.

    They built a residence on a yet more magnificent scale.

11. a standard of measurement or estimation; point of reference by which to gauge or rate.

    We have no scale by which to judge his achievements.

12. Music. a succession of tones ascending or descending according to fixed intervals, especially such a series beginning on a particular note.

    the major scale of C.

13. Education, Psychology. a graded series of tests or tasks for measuring intelligence, achievement, adjustment, etc.

14. Arithmetic. a system of numerical notation.

    the decimal scale.

15. anything by which one may ascend.

16. Obsolete.

    1. a ladder.

    2. a flight of stairs.

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verb (used with object)

scaled, scaling

1. to climb by or as if by a ladder; climb up or over.

2. to make according to scale.

3. to adjust in amount according to a fixed scale or proportion (often followed by down orup ).

   to scale down wages.

4. to measure by or as if by a scale.

5. Lumbering.

   1. to measure (logs).

   2. to estimate the amount of (standing timber).

6. Australian Informal. to ride on (public transportation) without paying the fare.

verb (used without object)

scaled, scaling

1. to climb; ascend; mount.

2. to progress in a graduated series.

scale ¹ British  

/ skeɪl /

noun

1. any of the numerous plates, made of various substances resembling enamel or dentine, covering the bodies of fishes

2. 1. any of the horny or chitinous plates covering a part or the entire body of certain reptiles and mammals

   2. any of the numerous minute structures covering the wings of lepidoptera

3. a thin flat piece or flake

4. a thin flake of dead epidermis shed from the skin: excessive shedding may be the result of a skin disease

5. a specialized leaf or bract, esp the protective covering of a bud or the dry membranous bract of a catkin

6. See scale insect

7. a flaky black oxide of iron formed on the surface of iron or steel at high temperatures

8. any oxide formed on a metal during heat treatment

9. another word for limescale

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verb

1. (tr) to remove the scales or coating from

2. to peel off or cause to peel off in flakes or scales

3. (intr) to shed scales

4. to cover or become covered with scales, incrustation, etc

5. (tr) to throw (a disc or thin flat object) edgewise through the air or along the surface of water

6. informal (intr) to ride on public transport without paying a fare

7. slang (tr) to steal (something)

scale ² British  

/ skeɪl /

noun

1. a sequence of marks either at regular intervals or else representing equal steps, used as a reference in making measurements

2. a measuring instrument having such a scale

3. 1. the ratio between the size of something real and that of a model or representation of it

      the scale of the map was so large that we could find our house on it

   2. ( as modifier )

      a scale model

4. a line, numerical ratio, etc, for showing this ratio

5. a progressive or graduated table of things, wages, etc, in order of size, value, etc

   a wage scale for carpenters

6. an established measure or standard

7. a relative degree or extent

   he entertained on a grand scale

8. music a group of notes taken in ascending or descending order, esp within the compass of one octave

9. maths the notation of a given number system

   the decimal scale

10. a graded series of tests measuring mental development, etc

11. obsolete a ladder or staircase

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verb

1. to climb to the top of (a height) by or as if by a ladder

2. (tr) to make or draw (a model, plan, etc) according to a particular ratio of proportionate reduction

3. (tr; usually foll by up or down) to increase or reduce proportionately in size, etc

4. (in forestry) to estimate the board footage of (standing timber or logs)

scale ³ British  

/ skeɪl /

noun

1. (often plural) a machine or device for weighing

2. one of the pans of a balance

3. 1. to exercise a decisive influence

   2. (foll by at) to amount in weight (to)

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verb

1. to weigh with or as if with scales

2. to have a weight of

scale ¹ Scientific  

/ skāl /

1. One of the small thin plates forming the outer covering of fish, reptiles, and certain other animals.

2. A similar part, such as one of the minute structures overlapping to form the covering on the wings of butterflies and moths.

3. A small, thin, usually dry plant part, such as one of the protective leaves that cover a tree bud or one of the structures that contain the reproductive organs on the cones of a conifer.

4. A plant disease caused by scale insects.

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scale ² Scientific  

/ skāl /

1. An ordered system of numbering or indexing that is used as a reference standard in measurement, in which each number corresponds to some physical quantity. Some scales, such as temperature scales, have equal intervals; other scales, such as the Richter scale, are arranged as a geometric progression.

2. An instrument or a machine for weighing.

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scale ¹ Cultural  

1. A system of marks set at fixed intervals, used as a standard for measurement.

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scale ² Cultural  

1. In music, the sequence of tones that a piece of music principally uses. A composition in the key of C-major uses the C-major scale, made up of the white keys on a piano.

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scale More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing scale

• tip the balance (scale)
• turn the tables (scales)

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Synonym Usage

See climb.

Discover More

Temperature scales divide up the range of temperatures into equal degrees.

On a map, plan, or chart, a scale indicates the proportion between the representation and what it represents, such as the legend “One inch equals twenty miles” on a map.

Other Word Forms

• scaleless
  adjective
• scalelike
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of scale¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English (noun) scale, scalle, from Middle French escale, from West Germanic skāla; verb derivative of the noun; akin to scale ²

Origin of scale²

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English -scale, -schal, from Old Norse skālar (plural), cognate with Old English scealu “scale (of a balance)”

Origin of scale³

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English noun scale, skale, “ladder, rung of a ladder,” from Latin scālae “ladder, stairs”; verb derivative of the noun

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Explanation

A scale is a series that climbs up or down. Think of scaling, or climbing, a mountain; a musical scale: do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do; or a scale you weigh yourself on––it counts up the pounds one after another after another. Scale can be a ratio too––when maps are drawn "to scale," that means one mile of real road might translate to one inch of road on the map. Even fish scales can be understood this way––they repeat the same shape row after row after row. You can also rate something using a scale: "How much do you love pizza? Rate it on a scale of one to ten, with one being blech and ten being amazing."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scale scaled scaling

Sweeney said Huang had built one of the few companies to reach massive scale while continuing to innovate, while others "fell into the trap" of choosing profits over innovation.

From Barron's ● Nov. 12, 2026

“We recognize the scale of this support, and we know some will call this circular financing. We see it differently,” she said in August.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 12, 2026

Children's commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza described how the "sheer scale of this abuse is deeply concerning".

From BBC ● Nov. 12, 2026

Researchers can examine the formation of individual galaxies while also observing how their combined radiation affects the universe on a much larger scale.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 12, 2026

I had to weigh the bags separately, because the hanging scale only goes up to fifteen.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy

The title is widely expected to become the biggest game of the decade, its launch coming 13 years after the previous edition scaled new heights in terms of gameplay and profitability.

From Barron's ● Nov. 9, 2026

It has reaped the windfall of the global AI investment boom: The stock market has scaled record highs, while exports have surged, spilling over into broader economic growth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

“It was made with a really hands-on approach by a very small group of people who cared a lot and that spirit has remained even as we’ve scaled it up,” Pinkleton said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026

ServiceNow shared that the company’s investments in cybersecurity are paying off as customers move from AI pilots to scaled production, resulting in an uptick in deal volume.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 28, 2026

Quickly he scaled the tree to the artificial scrape and, fending off Frightful with one arm, he gently lay the eggs in the box.

From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George

The next major challenge is scaling the technology to larger systems with greater processing power while preserving the precision and reliability demonstrated in the laboratory.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 12, 2026

The activists made it on to the site by scaling barrier fences despite a police presence.

From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 2026

Uber plans to put resources behind the partners it sees having the clearest paths to scaling up commercial operations, and having attractive economics, he says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026

As new consumer habits unfold, Google is working on scaling ads within AI Overviews and AI Mode.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 31, 2026

Campers would be having their lessons today, flying pegasi and practicing archery and scaling the lava wall.

From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan

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