weight

Weight Loss Weight loss options and approaches.

1. A measure of the heaviness of an object.
2. The force with which a body is attracted to Earth or another celestial body, equal to the product of the object's mass and the acceleration of gravity.
3. 1. A unit measure of gravitational force: a table of weights and measures.
   2. A system of such measures: avoirdupois weight; troy weight.
4. The measured heaviness of a specific object: a two-pound weight.
5. An object used principally to exert a force by virtue of its gravitational attraction to Earth, especially:
   1. A metallic solid used as a standard of comparison in weighing.
   2. An object used to hold something else down.
   3. A counterbalance in a machine.
   4. Sports. A heavy object, such as a dumbbell, lifted for exercise or in athletic competition.
6. Excessive fat; corpulence: exercising in order to lose weight.
7. Statistics. A factor assigned to a number in a computation, as in determining an average, to make the number's effect on the computation reflect its importance.
8. Oppressiveness; pressure: the weight of responsibilities.
9. The greater part; preponderance: The weight of the evidence is against the defendant.
10. 1. Influence, importance, or authority: Her approval carried great weight. See synonyms at importance.
    2. Ponderous quality: the weight of the speaker's words.
11. Sports. A classification according to comparative lightness or heaviness. Often used in combination: a heavyweight boxer.
12. The heaviness or thickness of a fabric in relation to a particular season or use. Often used in combination: a summerweight jacket.

1. To add to, by or as if by attaching a weight; make heavy or heavier.
2. To load down, burden, or oppress.
3. To increase the weight or body of (fabrics) by treating with chemicals.
4. Statistics. To assign weights or a weight to.
5. To cause to have a slant or bias: weighted the rules in favor of homeowners.
6. Sports. To assign to (a horse) the weight it must carry as a handicap in a race.

by weight

1. According to weight rather than volume or other measure.

1. Sports. To weigh within the limits stipulated for an athletic contest.

[Middle English wight, from Old English wiht.]

The gravitational weight of a body is the force with which the Earth attracts the body. By extension, the term is also used for the attraction of the Sun or a planet on a nearby body. This force is proportional to the body's mass and depends on the location. Because the distance from the surface to the center of the Earth decreases at higher latitudes, and because the centrifugal force of the Earth's rotation is greatest at the Equator, the observed weight of a body is smallest at the Equator and largest at the poles. The difference is sizable, about 1 part in 300. At a given location, the weight of a body is highest at the surface of the Earth. Weight is measured by several procedures. See also Balance; Mass; Weight measurement.

Advertising:

1. Number of exposures of an advertising message.

2. Number of gross rating points an advertiser wants to place in a market (ADI [area of dominant influence] or DMA [designated market area]).

3. see media weight.

Paper stock: see basis weight.

Print advertising: size as well as color, shape, and degree of blackness of an element in an ad (as a typeface).

Advertising:

1. Number of exposures of an advertising message.

2. Number of Gross Rating Points an advertiser wants to place in a market (ADI [area of dominant influence] or DMA [designated market area]).

3. see Media Weight.

Paper stock: method by which a grade of paper is determined. The weight of paper stock is calculated by the ream (500 sheets) in terms of any one of three standard sizes: bond (writing) paper=17" X 22"; book paper=25" X 38"; and cover stock=20" X 26". Hence, 20-pound paper means that a ream of bond paper measuring 17" X 22" weighs 20 pounds.

Physical: Although most of the rest of the world has converted to metric weights and measures, the United States continues to use the English system, under which the weight of most objects is given in ounces, pounds, and tons avoirdupois. For gold, silver, and other precious metals, Troy Weight is used.

Print advertising: size as well as color, shape, and degree of blackness of an element in an ad.

noun

1. The state or quality of being physically heavy: heaviness, heftiness, massiveness, ponderosity, ponderousness, weightiness. Informal avoirdupois. See heavy/light.
2. A duty or responsibility that is a source of anxiety, worry, or hardship: burden¹, millstone, onus, tax. Informal headache. See heavy/light, over/under.
3. The greatest part or portion: bulk, mass, preponderance, preponderancy. See big/small/amount.
4. The power to produce an effect by indirect means: influence, leverage, sway. Informal clout. Slang pull. See affect/ineffectiveness.
5. Effective means of influencing, compelling, or punishing: force, power. Informal clout, muscle. See over/under, strong/weak.
6. The quality or state of being important: concern, concernment, consequence, import, importance, moment, significance, significancy, weightiness. See important/unimportant.

verb

To place a burden or heavy load on: burden¹, charge, cumber, encumber, freight, lade, load, saddle, tax. See over/under.

Definition: burden
Antonyms: advantage, benefit, pleasure, solution

n

Definition: importance
Antonyms: triviality, unimportance

The product of the gravitational acceleration of one body and the mass of an attracted body; the measurement in pounds and ounces of how heavy an object is. In the metric system, weight (force) is measured in kg X m/sec².

For more information on weight, visit Britannica.com.

The force of attraction exerted on an object by the gravitational pull of the Earth. Weight is often expressed in units of mass, but this is not scientifically correct. Being a force, weight should be measured in newtons (N), and a body of mass will have a weight mg, where g is the acceleration of free fall (9.80 665 ms⁻²).

The force exerted on any object by gravity.

Heaviness; the degree to which a body is drawn toward the earth by gravity. See also Tables 4.1 and 4.2.

• apothecaries’ w. — an outmoded system of weight used in compounding prescriptions based on the grain (equivalent 64.8 mg). Its units are the scruple (20 grains), dram (3 scruples), ounce (8 drams) and pound (12 ounces). See also Tables 4.2 and 4.3.
• atomic w. — the weight of an atom of a chemical element, compared with the weight of an atom of carbon-12, which is taken as 12.00000.
• avoirdupois w. — the system of weight still used for ordinary commodities in some English-speaking countries. Its units are the dram (27.344 grains), ounce (16 drams) and pound (16 ounces).
• birth w. — weight of the newborn at the time of birth.
• body w. — the animal's weight. In herbivores this is often debatable because of the variation in ‘gut-fill’ depending on the availability of palatable food. In the absence of scales the weights of large animals are often estimated on the basis of their age and their girth just behind the elbow. Called also liveweight. See also body condition score.
• body w.-to-surface area — determination of many drug dosages is physiologically more accurate when based on body surface area rather than body weight; used particularly in cancer chemotherapy. For conversion table for use in dogs
• equivalent w. — the weight in grams of a substance that is equivalent in a chemical reaction to 1.008 g of hydrogen. See also chemical equivalent.
• w. gain — increase in body weight for specific periods; the principal measure of productivity in meat animals.
• w. loss — the loss of body weight from that previously measured. This estimate must take into account the difference in ‘gut-fill’ and the effects of developing pregnancy and recent parturition.
• metric w. — see Tables 4.1 and 4.2.
• molecular w. — the weight of a molecule of a chemical compound as compared with the weight of an atom of carbon-12; it is equal to the sum of the weights of its constituent atoms. Abbreviated mol. wt.
• shifting w. limb to limb — sign indicative of lameness especially in horses; while standing the horse is continually shifting its weight from one limb to the opposite one of the pair.

The weight of dry wood depends upon the cellular space, the proportion of wood substance to air space.

Tutor's tip: Another word that sounds like weight which means heaviness, is wait which means to be in a state of expectation.

Being weighed down in a dream may indicate that the dreamer is waiting for someone or something to change before they can feel unburdened in their life. Lightness, alternatively, often represents lighter, or more positive, emotions.

For other uses, see Weight (disambiguation).

A spring scale measures the weight of an object

In the physical sciences, the weight of an object is the magnitude, W, of the force that must be applied to an object in order to support it (i.e. hold it at rest) in a gravitational field. The weight of an object equals the magnitude of the gravitational force acting on the object, less the effect of its buoyancy in any fluid in which it might be immersed.^[1] Near the surface of the Earth, the acceleration due to gravity is approximately constant; this means that an object's weight is roughly proportional to its mass.

Contents 1 Weight and mass 2 Units of weight 2.1 SI units 2.2 The pound and other non-SI units 2.3 Conversion between weight (force) and mass 3 Sensation of weight 4 Measuring weight 5 Relative weights on the Earth, other celestial bodies and the Moon 6 See also 7 References

Weight and mass

Main article: Mass versus weight

In practical or everyday applications, weight means the same as mass as that term is used in physics.^[1][2] In modern scientific usage, however, weight and mass are fundamentally different quantities: mass is an intrinsic property of matter, whereas weight is a force that results from the action of gravity on matter: it measures how strongly gravity pulls on that matter.

However, the recognition of this difference is historically a relatively recent development and in many everyday situations the word "weight" continues to be used when, strictly, "mass" is meant. For example, most people would say that an object "weighs one kilogram", even though the kilogram is a unit of mass.

The distinction between mass and weight is unimportant for many practical purposes because the strength of gravity is very similar everywhere on the surface of the Earth. In such a constant gravitational field, the gravitational force exerted on an object (its weight) is directly proportional to its mass. For example, object A weighs 10 times as much as object B, so therefore the mass of object A is 10 times greater than that of object B. This means that an object's mass can be measured indirectly by its weight (for conversion formulas see below).

Nevertheless, the Earth's gravitational field can vary by as much as 0.5%^[3] at different locations on Earth (see Earth's gravity). These variations alter the relationship between weight and mass, and must be taken into account in high precision weight measurements that are intended to indirectly measure mass. To eliminate this variation, when the weight of objects is used in commerce, the value given is what the objects would weigh at a nominal standard gravitational acceleration of 9.80665 m/s² (approx. 32.174 ft/s²). Spring scales, which measure local weight, must be calibrated at the location at which the objects will be used to show this standard weight, to be legal for commerce.

The use of "weight" for "mass" also persists in some scientific terminology – for example, the chemical terms "atomic weight", "molecular weight", and "formula weight", can still be found rather than the preferred "atomic mass" etc.

The difference between mass and weight force becomes clear when, for example:

• objects are compared in different gravitational fields, such as away from the Earth's surface. For example, on the surface of the Moon, gravity is only about one-sixth as strong as on the surface of the Earth. A one-kilogram mass is still a one-kilogram mass (as mass is an intrinsic property of the object) but the downward force due to gravity is only one-sixth of what the object would experience on Earth.

• locating the center of gravity of an object (although if the gravitation field is uniform, the center of gravity will coincide with the center of mass).^{[clarification needed]}

• an object is immersed in a fluid. For instance, a brick weighs less when placed in water, even though its mass is unchanged, and a helium balloon in the atmosphere appears to have negative weight, even though its mass is positive.

Units of weight

Systems of units of weight (force) and mass have a tangled history, partly because the distinction was not properly understood when many of the units first came into use.

Three approaches to mass and force units

System	Gravitational		Engineering		Absolute
Force (F)	F = m·a		F = m·a/gc = w·a/g		F = m·a
Weight (w)	w = m·g		w = m·g/gc ≈ m		w = m·g
Units	English	Metric	English	Metric	English	Metric
Acceleration (a)	ft/s2	m/s2	ft/s2	m/s2	ft/s2	m/s2
Mass (m)	slug	hyl	pound-mass	kilogram	pound	kilogram
Force (F)	pound	kilopond	pound-force	kilopond	poundal	newton

^{[clarification needed]}

SI units

In most modern scientific work, physical quantities are measured in SI units. The SI unit of mass (and hence weight in some everyday senses)^[4] is the kilogram. The SI unit of force (and hence weight in the mechanics sense) is the newton (N) – which can also be expressed in SI base units as kg·m/s² (kilograms times meters per second squared).

The gravitational force exerted on an object is proportional to the mass of the object, so it is reasonable to think of the strength of gravity as measured in terms of force per unit mass, that is, newtons per kilogram (N/kg). However, the unit N/kg resolves to m/s²; (metres per second per second), which is the SI unit of acceleration, and in practice gravitational strength is usually quoted as an acceleration.

The pound and other non-SI units

In United States customary units, the pound can be either a unit of force or a unit of mass. Related units used in some distinct, separate subsystems of units include the poundal and the slug. The poundal is defined as the force necessary to accelerate an object of one-pound mass at 1 ft/s², and is equivalent to about 1/32 of a pound-force. The slug is defined as the amount of mass that accelerates at 1 ft/s² when one pound-force is exerted on it, and is equivalent to about 32 pounds (mass).

The kilogram-force is a non-SI unit of force, defined as the force exerted by a one kilogram mass in standard Earth gravity (equal to 9.80665 newtons exactly). The dyne is the cgs unit of force and is not a part of SI, while weights measured in the cgs unit of mass, the gram, remain a part of SI.

Conversion between weight (force) and mass

To convert between weight (force) and mass, Newton's second law of "force = mass × acceleration" (F = ma) is used. Here, F is the force (weight) due to gravity, m is the mass of the object in question, and a is the acceleration due to gravity, on Earth approximately 9.8 m/s² or 32.2 ft/s². In this context the same equation is often written as W = mg, with W standing for weight, and g for the acceleration due to gravity.

For example, using SI units, a mass of 1 kg experiences a weight force of 1 kg × 9.8 m/s² = 9.8 newtons (note that the newton is equivalent to kg m/s²).

Sensation of weight

See also: Apparent weight

The weight force that one actually senses is not the downward force of gravity, but the normal force exerted by the surface one stands on, which opposes gravity and prevents one from falling to the center of the Earth. This normal force, called the apparent weight, is the one that is measured by a spring scale. In most cases, it has the same magnitude as actual weight.

There are situations, however, that other forces need to be taken in account. For example, the apparent weight of an object immersed in water is smaller than in air; this is due to buoyancy, which opposes the gravitational force and therefore generates a smaller normal.

If there is no contact with any surface to provide such an opposing force then there is no sensation of weight (no apparent weight). This happens in free-fall, as experienced by sky-divers (until they approach terminal velocity) and astronauts in orbit, who feel "weightlessness" even though their bodies are still subject to the force of gravity: they're just no longer resisting it. The experience of having no apparent weight is also known as microgravity.

A degree of reduction of apparent weight occurs, for example, in elevators. In an elevator, a spring scale will register a decrease in a person's (apparent) weight as the elevator starts to accelerate downwards. This is because the opposing force of the elevator's floor decreases as it accelerates away underneath one's feet.

Measuring weight

Main article: Weighing scale

A weighbridge, used for weighing trucks

Weight is commonly measured using one of two methods. A spring scale or hydraulic or pneumatic scale measures local weight, the local force of gravity on the object (strictly apparent weight force). Since the local force of gravity can vary by up to 0.5% at different locations, spring scales will measure slightly different weights for the same object (the same mass) at different locations. To standardize weights, scales are always calibrated to read the weight an object would have at a nominal standard gravity of 9.80665 m/s² (approx. 32.174 ft/s²). However, this calibration is done at the factory. When the scale is moved to another location on Earth, the force of gravity will be different, causing a slight error. So to be highly accurate, and legal for commerce, spring scales must be recalibrated at the location at which they will be used.

A balance on the other hand, compares the weight of an unknown object in one scale pan to the weight of standard masses in the other, using a lever mechanism - a lever-balance. The standard masses are often referred to, non-technically, as "weights". Since any variations in gravity will act equally on the unknown and the known weights, a lever-balance will indicate the same value at any location on Earth. Therefore, balance "weights" are usually calibrated and marked in mass units, so the lever-balance measures mass by comparing the Earth's attraction on the unknown object and standard masses in the scale pans. In the absence of a gravitational field, away from planetary bodies, (e.g. space), a lever-balance would not work. Some balances can be marked in weight units, but since the weights are calibrated at the factory for standard gravity, the balance will measure standard weight, i.e. what the object would weigh at standard gravity, not the actual local force of gravity on the object.

If the actual force of gravity on the object is needed, this can be calculated by multiplying the mass measured by the balance by the acceleration due to gravity – either standard gravity (for everyday work) or the precise local gravity (for precision work). Tables of the gravitational acceleration at different locations can be found on the web.

Gross weight is a term that generally is found in commerce or trade applications, and refers to the total weight of a product and its packaging. Conversely, net weight refers to the weight of the product alone, discounting the weight of its container or packaging; and tare weight is the weight of the packaging alone.

Relative weights on the Earth, other celestial bodies and the Moon

Main article: Earth's gravity

The table below shows comparative gravitational accelerations at the surface of the Sun, the Earth's moon, each of the planets in the solar system, and Pluto. The “surface” is taken to mean the cloud tops of the gas giants (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune). For the Sun, the surface is taken to mean the photosphere. The values in the table have not been de-rated for the centrifugal effect of planet rotation (and cloud-top wind speeds for the gas giants) and therefore, generally speaking, are similar to the actual gravity that would be experienced near the poles.

Body	Multiple of Earth gravity	m/s²
Sun	27.90	274.1
Mercury	0.3770	3.703
Venus	0.9032	8.872
Earth	1 (by definition)	9.8226[5]
Moon	0.1655	1.625
Mars	0.3895	3.728
Jupiter	2.640	25.93
Saturn	1.139	11.19
Uranus	0.917	9.01
Neptune	1.148	11.28

See also

• Apparent weight
• Atomic weight
• Body mass index
• Curb weight
• Human weight
• Hydrostatic weighting
• Systems of measurement
• Weights and measures

References

1. ^ ^{a b} The National Standard of Canada, CAN/CSA-Z234.1-89 Canadian Metric Practice Guide, January 1989:5.7.3 Considerable confusion exists in the use of the term "weight." In commercial and everyday use, the term "weight" nearly always means mass. In science and technology "weight" has primarily meant a force due to gravity. In scientific and technical work, the term "weight" should be replaced by the term "mass" or "force," depending on the application. 5.7.4 The use of the verb "to weigh" meaning "to determine the mass of," e.g., "I weighed this object and determined its mass to be 5 kg," is correct.
2. ^ Barry N. Taylor, Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI), 1995, NIST Special Publication 881, section 8.3[1]
3. ^ Hodgeman, Charles, Ed. (1961). Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 44th Ed.. Cleveland, USA: Chemical Rubber Publishing Co..  p.3480-3485
4. ^ Barry N. Taylor, Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI), 1995, NIST Special Publication 881, section 8.3[2] "Thus the SI unit of the quantity weight used in this sense is the kilogram (kg) and the verb 'to weigh' means 'to determine the mass of' or '"to have a mass of.'"
5. ^ This value excludes the adjustment for centrifugal force due to Earth’s rotation and is therefore greater than the 9.80665 m/s² value of standard gravity.

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - vægt, lod, byrde, tyngde
v. tr. - vægte, belaste, tynge

idioms:

• weight training    vægttræning

Nederlands (Dutch)
gewicht, last, druk, gewichtigheid, zwaarte, belang, invloed

Français (French)
n. - poids, (Phys) masse, unité de poids, système de poids et mesures, poids (pour peser), charge, (fig) poids, influence, importance, poids (d'une horloge), lest (d'un filet), (Stat) coefficient pondérateur, (Tex) épaisseur, (Imprim) (l'intensité) de la noirceur/des caractères gras, poids (d'un jockey), accentuation (d'une syllabe), au poids, contribution
v. tr. - attacher un poids à, lester, plomber, (fig) peser sur, (Écon, Stat) pondérer, orienter, manipuler, peser (un cheval de course), déterminer (le poids exigé lors d'une course) (pour un cheval)

idioms:

• by weight    au poids
• weight training    exercices de musculation (en salle)

Deutsch (German)
n. - Gewicht, Last, Einfluß, Übergewicht
v. - beschweren, belasten, gewichten, (Sport) ein best. Gewicht geben, durch Beimischungen schwerer machen

idioms:

• by weight    nach Gewicht
• weight training    Körpertraining mit Gewichten

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - βάρος, βαρίδι, ζύγι, σταθμό, βαρύτητα, σπουδαιότητα, σημασία, (βαρύ) φορτίο, (μτφ.) επιρροή, κύρος
v. - βαραίνω, γέρνω

idioms:

• weight training    άσκηση με βάρη

Italiano (Italian)
peso

idioms:

• carry weight    godere di considerazione
• pull one's weight    mettercela tutta
• put on/gain weight    ingrassare
• throw one's weight around/about    darsi delle arie, fare il prepotente
• weight training    sollevamento pesi
• worth their weight in gold    vale il suo peso in oro

Português (Portuguese)
n. - peso (m), carga (f)
v. - pesar, ponderar

idioms:

• carry weight    possui importância
• pull one's weight    contribuir com uma parte
• put on/gain weight    engordar
• throw one's weight around/about    apoiar alguma coisa
• weight training    musculação (f)
• worth their weight in gold    valer seu peso em ouro

Русский (Russian)
вес, единица веса, тяжесть, бремя, грузило, важность, влияние, сила (удара), нажим (пером), тяжесть (обвинения), гиря, весовая категория, утяжелять, взвешивать, оценивать

idioms:

• carry weight    пользоваться влиянием
• pull one's weight    грести добросовестно, честно выполнять свою долю работы
• put on/gain weight    прибавлять в весе
• throw one's weight around/about    держаться заносчиво, распоряжаться
• weight training    физические упражнения с подниманием тяжестей
• worth their weight in gold    быть на вес золота, быть чрезвычайно ценным

Español (Spanish)
n. - carga, peso, importancia, pesadez, influencia
v. tr. - añadir peso a, dar valor a, sobrecargar, sopesar, trasladar el peso (del cuerpo) a

idioms:

• by weight    por peso
• weight training    entrenamiento con pesas

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - vikt, tyngd, tryck, belastning, betydelse, kula (sport)
v. - tynga, belasta

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
重量, 重担, 体重, 加重量于, 使加权, 压迫

idioms:

• weight training    举重

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 重量, 重擔, 體重
v. tr. - 加重量於, 使加權, 壓迫

idioms:

• weight training    舉重

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 무게, 형량 단위, 부담
v. tr. - ~에 무게를 가하다, 불리한 경우를 당하게 하다, ~에게 과중한 부담을 지우다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 重さ, 体重, 重荷, 負担, 重い物, 分銅, 重り, 重要性, 有力, 重力
v. - 重くする, 心に重くのしかかる

idioms:

• put on/gain weight    体重が増える
• weight training    ウェイトトレーニング

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) ثقل, وزن, كرة حديديه, حمل, وطأة, أهميه, نفوذ, سلطان, الوزن الذري (فعل) يثقل, يرهق, يزن‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮משקל, אבן-שקילה, משקולת, משא, נטל, מעמסה, מועקה, השפעה, חשיבות, משקל-יתר‬
v. tr. - ‮הוסיף משקל, הכביד, עשה לכבד, שקלל, העניק יתרון‬

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