ballast (ˈbæləst
)
Definitions
noun
- any dense heavy material, such as lead or iron pigs, used to stabilize a vessel, esp one that is not carrying cargo
- crushed rock, broken stone, etc, used for the foundation of a road or railway track
- coarse aggregate of sandy gravel, used in making concrete
- anything that provides stability or weight
- electronics a device for maintaining the current in a circuit
verb (tr)
- to give stability or weight to
Word Origin
C16: probably from Low German; related to Old Danish, Old Swedish barlast , literally: bare load (without commercial value), from bar bare, mere + last load, burdenSynonyms
View thesaurus entryUsage examples
I suggest, instead, that it was then that a trusty member of your crew detonated a charge in the port ballast room.
, San Andreas (1984)The first was a quiet woman whose support would add some ballast to his decisions.
Business Today (2001)Because of their unfamiliarity with the ballast system, the crew had left open a critical valve when they tried to isolate the leak.
Courier, Sunday Mail (2005)Mosley's main proposal is to slow any early-season runaway championship leaders by adding ballast to their machines.
Sun, News of the World (2002)It had large ballast weights in the tail and the huge air intake and exhausts obstructed the view forward and downward.
Test Pilots