Ballast
noun
A heavy material placed in a ship, hot-air balloon, or aircraft to give it stability.
To keep the ship steady during the storm, the crew adjusted the ballast.
Often appears as...
- ship ballast
- adjust the ballast
noun
Substance or material that is used to improve stability and control in vehicles like trains or cars.
The mechanic checked the ballast in the car for any issues.
Often appears as...
- check the ballast
- car ballast
noun
Granular material placed under railway tracks to keep them in place.
Workers spread ballast under the new railway tracks.
Often appears as...
- spread ballast
- railway ballast
Usage tips
Technical
noun
Something that provides stability or confidence in an uncertain situation.
His calm demeanor served as ballast in the stressful situation.
Often appears as...
- serve as ballast
- emotional ballast
noun
A heavy material placed in a ship, hot-air balloon, or aircraft to give it stability.
To keep the ship steady during the storm, the crew adjusted the ballast.
Often appears as...
- ship ballast
- adjust the ballast
noun
Substance or material that is used to improve stability and control in vehicles like trains or cars.
The mechanic checked the ballast in the car for any issues.
Often appears as...
- check the ballast
- car ballast
noun
Granular material placed under railway tracks to keep them in place.
Workers spread ballast under the new railway tracks.
Often appears as...
- spread ballast
- railway ballast
Usage tips
Technical
noun
Something that provides stability or confidence in an uncertain situation.
His calm demeanor served as ballast in the stressful situation.
Often appears as...
- serve as ballast
- emotional ballast
Definition 1 of 4
Pro Tip 1/3Maritime Stability
Used in nautical contexts to describe how ships maintain balance in water.
The crew distributed ballast evenly to avoid capsizing.
Pro Tip 2/3Adjusting Weight
In marine and aviation, 'ballast' often refers to weight that can be adjusted or moved.
They added ballast to the lower deck for better stability.
Pro Tip 3/3Craft Specific
Different crafts like ships and balloons use ballast but in varied forms, sandbags or water.
The hot-air balloon lost altitude, so we released some ballast.
Pro Tip 1/3Maritime Stability
Used in nautical contexts to describe how ships maintain balance in water.
The crew distributed ballast evenly to avoid capsizing.
Pro Tip 2/3Adjusting Weight
In marine and aviation, 'ballast' often refers to weight that can be adjusted or moved.
They added ballast to the lower deck for better stability.
Pro Tip 3/3Craft Specific
Different crafts like ships and balloons use ballast but in varied forms, sandbags or water.
The hot-air balloon lost altitude, so we released some ballast.
Pro Tip 1/3Maritime Stability
Used in nautical contexts to describe how ships maintain balance in water.
The crew distributed ballast evenly to avoid capsizing.
Pro Tip 2/3Adjusting Weight
In marine and aviation, 'ballast' often refers to weight that can be adjusted or moved.
They added ballast to the lower deck for better stability.
Pro Tip 3/3Craft Specific
Different crafts like ships and balloons use ballast but in varied forms, sandbags or water.
The hot-air balloon lost altitude, so we released some ballast.
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Video examples
Dee Boersma: Pay...
When they come back, they actually dump this oily ballast water into the ocean. Why do they do that? Because it's cheaper, because they don't pay the real environmental costs. We usually don't, and we want to start getting the accounting system right so we can pay the real cost. At first, the Argentine government said, "No, there's no way.
Video examples
Bjarke Ingels: 3...
and then they sail empty back. So quite often you load water for ballast. So we can actually hitch a ride for free. And in the middle of this sort of harbor bath, we're actually going to put the actual Little Mermaid. So the real Mermaid, the real water, and the real bikes. And when she's gone, we're going to invite
Video examples
Mind-blowing stage...
that's working really hard. It's a lot of ballast and structure and support around the back, and I'm going to show you the photos that aren't on my website. They're photos of the back of a set, the part that's not designed for the audience to see, however much work it's doing.
Video examples
Bertrand Piccard's...
spiritual level. But how do we do that? In ballooning, or in life, how do we change altitude? How do we go from the metaphor to something more practical that we can really use every day? Well, in a balloon it's easy, we have ballast.
Video examples
Sequencing genomes to...
extreme advantage of endemic species in these new locations I'm worried about specific biological invasions even opana fortunate known as the golden muscle is an Asian by vote brought to South America in ballast water off ship in
Video examples
Red Back Spider PIPE...
is a sticky globule this is her ballast it's all she needs she climbs back up to her leaf and takes up a position on the horizontal thread with her weighted filament dangling from one of her front legs
Video examples
Unintended consequences...
lessons to draw it's it's really a question of the system how the ship was loaded the ballast and many other things so the 20th century then saw how much more complex reality was but it also saw
Video examples
Life Among the Dead PIPE...
playthings or ballast for tin roof tops but Ramey a devout Catholic places the unclaimed corpses in a mass grave so that their souls may rest in peace boom bah bah those who don't have money to
Video examples
Living Among the Dead PIPE...
ballast for tin rooftops but ramie a devout Catholic places the unclaimed corpses in a mass grave so that their souls may rest in peace those who don't have money to ribéry the bones they're
Video examples
Civil War Submarine PIPE...
made a mistake you being the operator if you left a valve open too long and flooded a ballast tank too full any sequence of events I think you paid with your life get the hydro-zone
Video examples
Dee Boersma: Pay...
When they come back, they actually dump this oily ballast water into the ocean. Why do they do that? Because it's cheaper, because they don't pay the real environmental costs. We usually don't, and we want to start getting the accounting system right so we can pay the real cost. At first, the Argentine government said, "No, there's no way.
Video examples
Bjarke Ingels: 3...
and then they sail empty back. So quite often you load water for ballast. So we can actually hitch a ride for free. And in the middle of this sort of harbor bath, we're actually going to put the actual Little Mermaid. So the real Mermaid, the real water, and the real bikes. And when she's gone, we're going to invite
Video examples
Mind-blowing stage...
that's working really hard. It's a lot of ballast and structure and support around the back, and I'm going to show you the photos that aren't on my website. They're photos of the back of a set, the part that's not designed for the audience to see, however much work it's doing.
Video examples
Bertrand Piccard's...
spiritual level. But how do we do that? In ballooning, or in life, how do we change altitude? How do we go from the metaphor to something more practical that we can really use every day? Well, in a balloon it's easy, we have ballast.
Video examples
Sequencing genomes to...
extreme advantage of endemic species in these new locations I'm worried about specific biological invasions even opana fortunate known as the golden muscle is an Asian by vote brought to South America in ballast water off ship in
Video examples
Red Back Spider PIPE...
is a sticky globule this is her ballast it's all she needs she climbs back up to her leaf and takes up a position on the horizontal thread with her weighted filament dangling from one of her front legs
Video examples
Unintended consequences...
lessons to draw it's it's really a question of the system how the ship was loaded the ballast and many other things so the 20th century then saw how much more complex reality was but it also saw
Video examples
Life Among the Dead PIPE...
playthings or ballast for tin roof tops but Ramey a devout Catholic places the unclaimed corpses in a mass grave so that their souls may rest in peace boom bah bah those who don't have money to
Video examples
Living Among the Dead PIPE...
ballast for tin rooftops but ramie a devout Catholic places the unclaimed corpses in a mass grave so that their souls may rest in peace those who don't have money to ribéry the bones they're
Video examples
Civil War Submarine PIPE...
made a mistake you being the operator if you left a valve open too long and flooded a ballast tank too full any sequence of events I think you paid with your life get the hydro-zone
Example 1 of 10
Quote examples
Steve Fossett
American Aviator
A hot air balloon requires a great deal of fuel to keep it aloft, so that you can't fly it even for one day. A gas balloon, which usually uses helium, has the problem that the helium cools at night when the sun is not on it, and you have to throw ballast overboard to keep it from going to the surface.
Quote examples
Kate Burton
Welsh Actress
Beauty Queen' is the weirdest, strangest, and most perfect play to do before 'Hedda Gabler', because there are so many similar issues for Maureen and Hedda. I had played leading ladies before but couldn't really hook into them. After 'An American Daughter' and 'Beauty Queen', I had all the ballast.
Quote examples
Richard Cohen
American Journalist
Trump's presidency will fail. Just don't ask me how and when. It will collapse because at its center is a hollow man, lacking ballast, whose chaos cannot be contained.
Quote examples
Edward T. Hall
American Scientist
For him to have understood me would have meant reorganizing his thinking... giving up his intellectual ballast, and few people are willing to risk such a radical move.
Quote examples
Max Baucus
American Politician
Trade and investment have come to be the foundation, the ballast, of the U.S.-China relationship, providing great stability.
Quote examples
Minna Antrim
American Writer
Enthusiasms, like stimulants, are often affected by people with small mental ballast.
Quote examples
William Penn
English Leader
Less judgment than wit is more sail than ballast.
Quote examples
Steve Fossett
American Aviator
A hot air balloon requires a great deal of fuel to keep it aloft, so that you can't fly it even for one day. A gas balloon, which usually uses helium, has the problem that the helium cools at night when the sun is not on it, and you have to throw ballast overboard to keep it from going to the surface.
Quote examples
Kate Burton
Welsh Actress
Beauty Queen' is the weirdest, strangest, and most perfect play to do before 'Hedda Gabler', because there are so many similar issues for Maureen and Hedda. I had played leading ladies before but couldn't really hook into them. After 'An American Daughter' and 'Beauty Queen', I had all the ballast.
Quote examples
Richard Cohen
American Journalist
Trump's presidency will fail. Just don't ask me how and when. It will collapse because at its center is a hollow man, lacking ballast, whose chaos cannot be contained.
Quote examples
Edward T. Hall
American Scientist
For him to have understood me would have meant reorganizing his thinking... giving up his intellectual ballast, and few people are willing to risk such a radical move.
Quote examples
Max Baucus
American Politician
Trade and investment have come to be the foundation, the ballast, of the U.S.-China relationship, providing great stability.
Quote examples
Minna Antrim
American Writer
Enthusiasms, like stimulants, are often affected by people with small mental ballast.
Quote examples
William Penn
English Leader
Less judgment than wit is more sail than ballast.
Example 1 of 7
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