load
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A quantity that can be processed or transported at one time.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
lohdIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈloʊd
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A quantity that can be processed or transported at one time
“The system broke down under excessive loads.”
A burden; a weight to be carried.
figuratively
A worry or concern to be endured, especially in the phrase a load off one's mind.
A quantity of washing put into a washing machine for a wash cycle.
Goods carried by a large vehicle
in combination
Used to form nouns that indicate a large quantity, often corresponding to the capacity of a vehicle
verb
transitive
To place in or on a conveyance or a place of storage.
intransitive
To be placed into storage or conveyance.
transitive
To fill (a firearm or artillery) with munition.
transitive
To insert (an item or items) into an apparatus so as to ready it for operation, such as a reel of film into a camera, sheets of paper into a printer etc.
intransitive
To be put into use in an apparatus.
transitive
To fill (an apparatus) with raw material.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- General English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A burden; a weight to be carried.
Used this way, load is a reasonably familiar word with a faintly unfavourable edge. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Critical or judgemental
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Nearby words
- lade , rarer, so it draws attention
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
A large number or amount.
Weight to be borne or conveyed.
Charged with ammunition.
A laborer who loads and unloads vessels in a port.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Waterlines to show the level the water should reach when the ship is properly loaded.
The ratio of an external load to the weight of the aircraft (measured in g).
A stop where carriers can be loaded and unloaded.
Fill or place a load on.
A stop where carriers can be loaded and unloaded.
Load with a pack.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.