weigh down

verb

1. (adverb) to press (a person) down by or as if by weight

   his troubles weighed him down

Idioms and Phrases

Burden, oppress, as in Their problems have weighed them down. This expression transfers bowing under a physical weight to emotional burdens. [c. 1600]

Example Sentences

It’s allowed them to gradually build on successes without being weighed down by the past.

From Los Angeles Times

Obviously, the global backdrop has weighed down on the economy.

From BBC

Comcast is spinning off the cable networks because it believes the mature outlets face a bleak future due to pay TV cord-cutting and are an albatross weighing down its stock price.

From Los Angeles Times

The hope is he has learned from that experience, and will not be weighed down at the beginning of the Ashes tour.

From BBC

But the government's own policies risk weighing down the outlook for the next year or two.

From BBC

Related Words

• hold down 
• overburden 
• overload 
• sadden