WordGarden.iodeadweight
C2Pronunciation
UK
- /dˈɛdweɪt/
US
- /ˈdɛdˌweɪt/
Meanings
Noun
a person or thing regarded as a useless burden or drag; demeaning when used of a person
the heavy weight of something inert or unsupported
the total load a ship can safely carry
Beyond the definition
Imagine trying to run a race with a heavy backpack full of rocks. That backpack is deadweight—it slows you down and doesn’t help you at all. In everyday English, we use it for a person, thing, or task that adds weight, cost, or trouble without giving much back. A failing project that keeps taking money and time can feel like deadweight. An employee who never contributes may be called deadweight. The idea is simple: it’s something you’re carrying around that makes progress harder, and you’d be better off without it.
At its core, deadweight is “heavy weight that doesn’t do anything for you.” It can be literal or figurative.
In literal use, it can mean the full, unrelieved weight of something that can’t support itself or help you carry it—like the deadweight of a couch when you’re moving it, or the deadweight of a person you’re trying to lift. In transport, deadweight can also be a technical term: in shipping, “deadweight” (as in deadweight tonnage) is a measure of how much weight a ship can safely carry, including cargo, fuel, water, stores, crew, and passengers.
You might hear it used in everyday conversation: "The old computer was just deadweight, slowing down our entire system." Or, "That extra meeting felt like deadweight—a waste of everyone's time." It implies something is not only unnecessary but actively detrimental.
In business or politics, you may also see it in the phrase deadweight loss: a loss that happens when rules or taxes cause fewer useful trades or deals to happen, so value disappears instead of going to anyone.
So, if something is holding you back without offering much value, it’s likely deadweight—and probably best to drop if you can.
Examples
- 1
Hiking gear
By the second hour of the hike, the extra camera felt like deadweight in my bag.
- 2
Workplace burden
The manager said the team could no longer carry deadweight.
- Phrasecarry deadweight
keep someone who is not helping enough
- 3
Family dependence
After losing his job, he hated feeling like deadweight in his sister's apartment.
- Phrasefeel like deadweight
feel useless and dependent
- 4
Business strategy
Investors saw the outdated product line as deadweight and pushed the company to cut it.
See also
Similar
Shades of meaning
Contrast
Used with (collocations)
- carry deadweight
- cut the deadweight
Explore
- inefficiency
- underperformance
Forms and spellings
1 form open this card.
Main spelling
- deadweight