counterbalance
/ˌkaʊntɚˈbæləns/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.74 in modern English
20
Scrabble Score
14
Letters
4
Syllables
10
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A weight that is put in opposition to an equal weight so it keeps that in balance.
Example Sentences
- "Big brother counterbalances his two siblings to the pound."
- "[…] the remaining Air was not able to counterballance the Mercurial Cylinder, […]"
- "Arm wrestling is undecided as long as the opponents counterbalance each other."
- "The defenders' knowledge of the terrain roughly counterbalances the attackers' superior equipment."
- "Still, a strong reluctance to re-enter a service from which he had been dismissed with contempt, almost counterbalanced these considerations."
- "Perhaps her views of life were too morbid, but her companions had enough cheerfulness to counterbalance any undue tinge of sadness given by one who had obviously suffered much."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱe? Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm Proto-Italic *kom Proto-Italic *kom- Proto-Indo-European *-teros Proto-Italic *-teros Proto-Italic *komterosder. Proto-Italic *komterād Latin contrāder. Old French contre- Anglo-Norman countre-bor. Middle English counter- English counter- Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwi- Proto-Italic *dwi- Latin bi- Latin lanx Latin bilanx Vulgar Latin *bilancia Old French balancebor. Middle English balaunce English balance English counterbalance From counter- + balance.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌkaʊntɚˈbæləns/
- British English: /ˌkaʊntəˈbæləns/