Definition Definition

burden - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'burden' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Burden [ n.]
- That which is borne or carried; a load.
- That which is borne with labor or difficulty; that which is grievous, wearisome, or oppressive.
- The capacity of a vessel, or the weight of cargo that she will carry; as, a ship of a hundred tons burden.
- The tops or heads of stream-work which lie over the stream of tin.
- The proportion of ore and flux to fuel, in the charge of a blast furnace.
- A fixed quantity of certain commodities; as, a burden of gad steel, 120 pounds.
- A birth.
- The verse repeated in a song, or the return of the theme at the end of each stanza; the chorus; refrain. Hence: That which is often repeated or which is dwelt upon; the main topic; as, the burden of a prayer.
- The drone of a bagpipe.
- A club.
2 . Burden [ v. t.]
- To encumber with weight (literal or figurative); to lay a heavy load upon; to load.
- To oppress with anything grievous or trying; to overload; as, to burden a nation with taxes.
- To impose, as a load or burden; to lay or place as a burden (something heavy or objectionable).

Meaning of 'burden' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . burden [ n]
Meaning (1):
- an onerous or difficult concern
Example in sentence:
  • that's a load off my mind;
  • the burden of responsibility
2 . burden [ v]
Meaning (2):
- impose a task upon, assign a responsibility to
Example in sentence:
  • He charged her with cleaning up all the files over the weekend