different between weight vs might

English

Etymology

From Middle English weight, wei?te, weght, wight, from Old English wiht, ?ewiht (“weight”), from Proto-Germanic *wihtiz ("weight"; compare *wegan? (“to move”)), from Proto-Indo-European *we??- (“to move; pull; draw; drive”).

Cognate with Scots wecht, weicht (“weight”), Saterland Frisian Wächte (“scale”) and Gewicht (“weight”), West Frisian gewicht (“weight”), Dutch gewicht (“weight”), German Low German Wicht, Gewicht (“weight”) and German Gewicht (“weight”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: w?t, IPA^(key): /we?t/
• Rhymes: -e?t
• Homophone: wait

Noun

weight (countable and uncountable, plural weights)

1. The force on an object due to the gravitational attraction between it and the Earth (or whatever astronomical object it is primarily influenced by).
2. An object used to make something heavier.
3. A standardized block of metal used in a balance to measure the mass of another object.
4. Importance or influence.
   • 1907 Alonso de Espinosa, Hakluyt Society & Sir Clements Robert Markham, The Guanches of Tenerife: the holy image of Our Lady of Candelaria, and the Spanish conquest and settlement, Printed for the Hakluyt Society, p116

     Another knight came to settle on the island, a man of much weight and position, on whom the Adelantados of all the island relied, and who was made a magistrate.

   • 1945 Mikia Pezas, The price of liberty, I. Washburn, Inc., p11

     "You surely are a man of some weight around here," I said.

5. (weightlifting) An object, such as a weight plate or barbell, used for strength training.

6. (lubricants) viscosity rating.
8. (physics) Mass (atomic weight, molecular weight, etc.) (in restricted circumstances)
9. (physics, proscribed) Synonym of mass (in general circumstances)
10. (measurement) Mass (net weight, troy weight, carat weight, etc.).
11. (statistics) A variable which multiplies a value for ease of statistical manipulation.
12. (topology) The smallest cardinality of a base.
13. (typography) The boldness of a font; the relative thickness of its strokes.
14. (visual art) The relative thickness of a drawn rule or painted brushstroke, line weight.
15. (visual art) The illusion of mass.
16. (visual art) The thickness and opacity of paint.
17. Pressure; burden.
18. The resistance against which a machine acts, as opposed to the power which moves it.
19. (slang, uncountable) Shipments of (often illegal) drugs.

20. (slang, countable) One pound of drugs, especially cannabis.
    • 2002, Nicholas Dorn, Karim Murji, Nigel South, Traffickers: Drug Markets and Law Enforcement (page 5)

      [I was] doing a weight [1 lb. at that time] a week, sometimes more, sometimes less.
21. (criminal slang, dated) Money.
    • 1974, Martin R. Haskell, ?Lewis Yablonsky, Crime and Delinquency (page 96)

      No matter how much money he makes, he is still a soldier, but he has the weight.

Alternative forms

• wt. (abbreviation)

Derived terms

Related terms

• weigh

Coordinate terms

• mass
• inertial mass
• gravitational mass

Descendants

• ? Japanese: ???? (ueito)
• ? Burmese: ???? (wit)

Translations

Verb

weight (third-person singular simple present weights, present participle weighting, simple past and past participle weighted)

1. (transitive) To add weight to something; to make something heavier.
   1. (transitive, dyeing) To load (fabrics) with barite, etc. to increase the weight.
2. (transitive) To load, burden or oppress someone.
3. (transitive, mathematics) To assign weights to individual statistics.
4. (transitive) To bias something; to slant.
5. (transitive, horse racing) To handicap a horse with a specified weight.
6. (transitive, sports) To give a certain amount of force to a throw, kick, hit, etc.

Translations

English

Alternative forms

• mite (eye dialect, informal)

Pronunciation

• enPR: m?t, IPA^(key): /ma?t/
• Homophone: mite
• Rhymes: -a?t

Etymology 1

From Middle English myght, might (also maught, macht, maht), from Old English miht, mieht, meaht, mæht (“might, bodily strength, power, authority, ability, virtue, mighty work, miracle, angel”), from Proto-West Germanic *mahti, from Proto-Germanic *mahtiz, *mahtuz (“might, power”), from Proto-Indo-European *móg?tis, *meg?- (“to allow, be able, help”), corresponding to Germanic *magan? + *-þiz.

Cognate with Scots micht, maucht (“might”), North Frisian macht (“might, ability”), West Frisian macht (“might, ability”), Dutch macht (“might, power”), German Macht (“power, might”), Swedish makt (“might”), Norwegian makt (“power”), Icelandic máttur (“might”), Gothic ???????????????????? (mahts). Related to may.

Noun

might (countable and uncountable, plural mights)

1. (countable, uncountable) Power, strength, force or influence held by a person or group.
   • 1969, {unattributed}, Journal of the United Service Institution of India, Volume 99

     "Since every nation considers itself right, peace lies in balancing the military mights of the possible rivals."

2. (uncountable) Physical strength or force.

   He pushed with all his might, but still it would not move.

3. (uncountable) The ability to do something.

Derived terms

Translations

Adjective

might (comparative mighter, superlative mightest)

1. (obsolete) Mighty; powerful.
2. (obsolete) Possible.

Etymology 2

From Old English meahte and mihte, from magan, whence English may.

Verb

might (third-person singular simple present might, no present participle, simple past might, no past participle)

1. (auxiliary) Used to indicate conditional or possible actions.
   • 1608, Joseph Hall, Characters of Virtues and Vices

     The characterism of an honest man: He looks not to what he might do, but what he should.

   • “A tight little craft,” was Austin’s invariable comment on the matron; […]. ¶ Near her wandered her husband, orientally bland, invariably affable, and from time to time squinting sideways, as usual, in the ever-renewed expectation that he might catch a glimpse of his stiff, retroussé moustache.
2. (auxiliary) simple past tense of may Used to indicate permission in past tense.
   • 1922, James Frazer, The Golden Bough, Chapter 60:

     The king and queen of Tahiti might not touch the ground anywhere but within their hereditary domains; for the ground on which they trod became sacred.

3. (auxiliary) simple past tense of may Used to indicate possibility in past tense.
4. Used to indicate a desired past action that was not done.
5. (auxiliary) Even though.
6. (auxiliary) Used in polite requests for permission

Usage notes

For many speakers, the use as the past tense of the auxiliary may, indicating permission, is obsolete: I told him he might not see her will only be interpreted as "I told him he would possibly not see her," and not as "I told him he was not allowed to see her." For the latter case, "could not" or "was/were not allowed to," "was/were forbidden to," etc., will be used instead.

Conjugation

• archaic second-person singular simple past - mightest
• nonstandard, archaic third-person singular simple past - mighteth

Alternative forms

• mought (obsolete outside US dialects)
• mout (US regional pronunciation spelling)

Translations

See also

• could
• Appendix:English modal verbs
• Appendix:English tag questions

References

• might at OneLook Dictionary Search