welterweight

[wel-ter-weyt]

noun

a boxer or other contestant intermediate in weight between a lightweight and a middleweight, especially a professional boxer weighing up to 147 pounds (67 kg).

(in a steeplechase or hurdle race) a weight of 28 pounds (13 kg) that is assigned to a horse in addition to the poundage assigned based on the age of the horse.

a rider of steeplechase or hurdle-race horses who, though acting as a jockey, is of comparatively average weight and not small or lightweight as a professional jockey; heavyweight rider.

Origin of welterweight

First recorded in 1815–25; welter² + weight

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for welterweight

Contemporary Examples of welterweight

Buzz Bissinger writes a four-page sentence that ruins a requiem for welterweight Barney Ross.
Redeeming 'Jewish Jocks'
Spencer Ackerman
October 31, 2012
Hey, and don't forget there's the welterweight fight between Murdoch's New York Post and Mort Zuckerman's Daily News.
Newspaper War!
Harold Evans
April 26, 2010

Historical Examples of welterweight

As a Welterweight, Milt had learned to depend on speed and quick hands.
Vital Ingredient
Gerald Vance
My brother said the welterweight got what was coming to him because he hadn't intelligence enough to stay where he belonged.
What Will People Say?
Rupert Hughes

British Dictionary definitions for welterweight

welterweight

noun

a professional boxer weighing 140–147 pounds (63.5–66.5 kg)
an amateur boxer weighing 63.5–67 kg (140–148 pounds)
(as modifier)a great welterweight era

a wrestler in a similar weight category (usually 154–172 pounds (70–78 kg))

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for welterweight

1832, "heavyweight horseman," later "boxer or wrestler of a certain weight" (1896), from earlier welter "heavyweight horseman or boxer" (1804), possibly from welt (v.) "beat severely" (c.1400).