weigh

¹ American  

[wey] / weɪ /

verb (used with object)

• weighs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• weighed,
  past participle,  past
• weighing
  present participle

1. to determine or ascertain the force that gravitation exerts upon (a person or thing) by use of a balance, scale, or other mechanical device.

   to weigh oneself; to weigh potatoes; to weigh gases.

2. to hold up or balance, as in the hand, in order to estimate the weight.

3. to measure, separate, or apportion (a certain quantity of something) according to weight (usually followed byout ).

   to weigh out five pounds of sugar.

4. to make heavy; increase the weight or bulk of; weight.

   We weighed the drapes to make them hang properly.

5. to evaluate in the mind; consider carefully in order to reach an opinion, decision, or choice.

   to weigh the facts; to weigh a proposal.

   Synonyms:

   contemplate, ponder

6. Archaic. to raise, lift, or hoist (something).

7. Obsolete. to think important; esteem.

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verb (used without object)

• weighs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• weighed,
  past participle,  past
• weighing
  present participle

1. to have weight or a specified amount of weight.

   to weigh less; to weigh a ton.

2. to have importance, moment, or consequence.

   Your recommendation weighs heavily in his favor.

3. to bear down as a weight or burden (usually followed by on orupon ).

   Responsibility weighed upon her.

4. to consider carefully or judicially.

   to weigh well before deciding.

5. (of a ship) to raise the anchor and get under way.

   The ship weighed early and escaped in the fog.

verb phrase

1. weigh down

   1. to cause to become bowed under a weight.

      snow and ice weighing down the trees.

   2. to lower the spirits of; burden; depress.

      This predicament weighs me down.

2. weigh in

   1. (of a boxer or wrestler) to be weighed by a medical examiner on the day of a bout.

   2. to be of the weight determined by such a weighing.

      He weighed in at 170 pounds.

   3. (of a jockey) to be weighed with the saddle and weights after a race.

   4. Informal. to offer an opinion, advice, support, etc., especially in a forceful or authoritative way.

      The chairman weighed in with an idea for the fundraiser.

3. weigh out (of a jockey)

   1. to be weighed with the saddle and weights before a race.

   2. to be of the weight determined by such a weighing.

idioms

1. weigh one's words. word.

2. weigh anchor, to heave up a ship's anchor in preparation for getting under way.

weigh ² American  

[wey] / weɪ /

idioms

1. under weigh, in motion; under way.

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weigh ¹ British  

/ weɪ /

verb

1. (tr) to measure the weight of

2. (intr) to have weight or be heavy

   she weighs more than her sister

3. to apportion according to weight

4. (tr) to consider carefully

   to weigh the facts of a case

5. (intr) to be influential

   his words weighed little with the jury

6. to be oppressive or burdensome (to)

7. obsolete to regard or esteem

8. to raise a vessel's anchor or (of a vessel) to have its anchor raised preparatory to departure

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weigh ² British  

/ weɪ /

noun

1. a variant spelling of under way

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Synonym Usage

See study.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• weigher
  noun
• unweighable
  adjective
• unweighing
  adjective
• weighable
  adjective
• well-weighed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• weighing
  present
• weighed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• weigh
  simple
• weighs
  simple
• have weighed
  perfect
• has weighed
  perfect
• am weighing
  progressive
• are weighing
  progressive
• is weighing
  progressive
• have been weighing
  perfect progressive
• has been weighing
  perfect progressive

Past

• weighed
  simple
• had weighed
  perfect
• was weighing
  progressive
• were weighing
  progressive
• had been weighing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will weigh
  simple
• will have weighed
  perfect
• will be weighing
  progressive
• will have been weighing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of weigh¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English weien, wein, weighen, Old English wegan “to carry, weigh”; cognate with Dutch wegen, German wägen, Old Norse vega; akin to Latin vehere “to carry, convey”

Origin of weigh²

First recorded in 1775–85; spelling variant of way ¹ by association with weigh anchor

Explanation

To weigh is all about judging; you could be seeing how heavy something is or if it is a good choice. You could weigh the tomatoes you're buying or weigh your options when applying to college. To weigh something can mean to physically assess its weight — is it 3 pounds? 40 kilos? 22 grams? But it's no accident that the symbol for justice is often a scale. That's because all of the facts of a case need to be weighed or evaluated for justice to be served. And hopefully the decision will be balanced and fair.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

weigh weighs weighed weighing

To forge better social connections, weigh whether shyness, cynicism or snap judgments of others hold you back.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026

Hunt Transport Services expects its profit to fall by 5% to 10% in the current quarter as higher costs and fuel prices weigh on its bottom line, the Journal’s Connor Hart reports.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

Pollock would also have to weigh up whether swapping the Prem champions for the league's bottom club, who are without Champions Cup rugby for 2026-27 at least, is desirable.

From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026

House races, California voters in November also will weigh in on a slew of ballot measures.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

I assure you that we will carefully weigh all options in our management of local wildlife.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

A higher interest-rate environment typically weighs on nonyielding gold.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

Meta Platforms stock advances as Wall Street weighs in on the Facebook-parent’s consumer AI agent.

From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026

She weighs about 100 pounds and is 4 feet, 10 inches tall.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026

“We do not share that lightly, and we understand that a longer tour weighs heavily on every household, including our own,” the letter said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026

It is the color of an unripe raspberry, and it weighs about as much as a pair of blue jeans.

From "Chasing Vermeer" by Blue Balliett

This week the department weighed in on Paramount’s side.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

JPMorgan’s Asia tech analyst Gokul Hariharan weighed in on the debate.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026

A rebound in artificial-intelligence stocks was muted as traders weighed statements from AI firms about slowing development.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

It’s about finding material ways to pay down that debt, and also about recognizing how much the debt has weighed us down – all of us, white and black and brown and all other shades.

From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2014

Maybe, he decided, before they weighed anchor, he’d write a letter to Elizabeth.

From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham

Compatible blood was unavailable, so physicians ultimately transfused unmatched red blood cells after weighing the risks.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026

Back in Colorado, Hudson is still weighing his options.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026

The dollar has weakened nearly 13% against the won since late June, weighing on the company’s profitability, Park notes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

During Season 2, they were far more competitive, hauling in behemoths weighing 45 and 58 pounds.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

Richard felt cold sweat weighing on his eyelashes.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Related Words

• analyze
• balance
• estimate
• evaluate
• examine
• ponder