Definition

1. Noun:

   • Heavy material used for stability: "Ballast" refers to any heavy substance placed in a vehicle (especially a ship or aircraft) to improve its stability and control.
   • Coarse stone or gravel: In construction, "ballast" is the layer of crushed stone or gravel that forms the foundation for railway tracks or roads.
   • A steadying influence: Figuratively, "ballast" can describe a person, quality, or thing that provides stability, balance, or emotional steadiness.
   • Electrical component: In electrical engineering, "ballast" is a device that regulates the current in a circuit, such as in a fluorescent lamp.

2. Verb:

   • To stabilize with heavy material: To "ballast" means to put heavy material into something to make it steady or balanced.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Material for stability):
  • The ship took on seawater as ballast.
  • The track workers replaced the old ballast under the rails.
• Noun (Steadying influence):
  • His deep faith was the ballast that kept him calm during the crisis.
• Noun (Electrical device):
  • The fluorescent light won't work without a functioning ballast.
• Verb:
  • The crew ballasted the ship before the storm.

Advanced Usage

• "In ballast": Describing a ship carrying only stabilizing weight, not cargo.
  • The tanker was sailing in ballast back to the loading port.
• Figurative use for character: Describing a person's stability.
  • She provided the emotional ballast for the entire team.

Variants and Related Words

• Ballasted (adj.): Describing something that has been stabilized with ballast.
  • The ballasted hull made the ship more seaworthy.
• Ballasting (n.): The act or process of adding ballast.
  • The ballasting of the aircraft was carefully calculated.

Synonyms

• Counterweight: A weight that balances another.
• Stabilizer: Something that provides stability.
• Keel: The central structural base of a ship (related in function).
• Anchor: Something that provides stability or security (figurative).

Related Phrases

• To have no ballast: To be unstable, frivolous, or lacking in seriousness.
  • His reckless decisions showed he had no ballast.
• To lose one's ballast: To lose one's composure or stability.
  • Under the intense pressure, she began to lose her ballast.

Idioms

• Psychological/emotional ballast: Used to describe mental or emotional stability.
  • In turbulent times, a routine can serve as psychological ballast.

Noun

1. an electrical device for starting and regulating fluorescent and discharge lamps
2. a resistor inserted into a circuit to compensate for changes (as those arising from temperature fluctuations)
3. an attribute that tends to give stability in character and morals; something that steadies the mind or feelings
4. coarse gravel laid to form a bed for streets and railroads
5. any heavy material used to stabilize a ship or airship

Verb

1. make steady with a ballast