Meaning & use
weighed down
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Meanings
adjectiveafter a verb
Made to move slowly or bend under the heaviness of something you are carrying or that is placed on you.
Grammar: Usually follows be or a linking verb, plus with or by: weighed down with bags.
Patterns
- weighed down with something
- weighed down by something
The hikers were weighed down with heavy backpacks.
The branch was weighed down by the wet snow.
I walked home weighed down with shopping bags.
adjectiveafter a verbfigurative
Feeling worried, sad or burdened by problems or responsibilities.
Grammar: Often follows feel or be, plus with or by: weighed down by debt.
Patterns
- weighed down with worries
- weighed down by something
She felt weighed down by all the work she had to finish.
Many students are weighed down with debt after graduating.
He seemed weighed down by guilt.
Common combinations
- weighed down with luggage
- The travelers were weighed down with luggage.
- weighed down by debt
- The family felt weighed down by debt.
- weighed down by worry
- She was weighed down by worry about her exams.
- feel weighed down
- I feel weighed down by so many deadlines.
- weighed down with responsibility
- He was weighed down with responsibility for the whole team.
Synonyms and how they differ
- burdened
- Burdened focuses on carrying a duty or problem and is more commonly figurative than weighed down.
- laden
- Laden is more formal and literary and says something is full or loaded, with less sense of struggle than weighed down.
- encumbered
- Encumbered is formal and stresses being held back or hindered by something, whereas weighed down also suggests heaviness.
- overloaded
- Overloaded suggests carrying more than the limit allows, while weighed down describes the effect of the weight.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: weighed down or weighted down?
weighed down vs weighted down
Weighted down is also used, often when something has weight deliberately added. Weighed down is more common for feeling burdened.
Practice
After carrying the camping gear uphill for three hours, the scouts were ___ with their packs.
Choose one answer.
Weighed down with means made heavy and slow by something carried. Weighed up means assessed, and weighed in is a sports or checking term.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “weighed down”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.