Contextualizebeta

counterbalance

noun
/ˌkaʊntəˈbæləns/UK/ˌkaʊntɚˈbæləns/US

Etymology

From counter- + balance.

  1. derived from bilanx
  2. derived from *bilancia✻
  3. derived from balance
  4. derived from balaunce
  5. formed as counterbalance — “counter- + balance”

Definitions

  1. A weight that is put in opposition to an equal weight so it keeps that in balance.

  2. A force or influence that balances, checks or limits an opposite one.

  3. To apply weight in order to balance an opposing weight.

    • Big brother counterbalances his two siblings to the pound.
    • […] the remaining Air was not able to counterballance the Mercurial Cylinder, […]
  4. ›+ 1 more definition

    1. To match or equal in effect when applying opposing force.

      • Arm wrestling is undecided as long as the opponents counterbalance each other.
      • The defenders' knowledge of the terrain roughly counterbalances the attackers' superior equipment.
      • Still, a strong reluctance to re-enter a service from which he had been dismissed with contempt, almost counterbalanced these considerations.

The neighborhood

Derived

counterbalancer, counterbalancingly

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at counterbalance. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

01counterbalance02balance03counterweight04bascule05counterbalanced

A definitional loop anchored at counterbalance. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

5 hops · closes at counterbalance

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA