burden

bur·den ¹  (bûrdn)

n.

1. Something that is carried.

2.

a. Something that is emotionally difficult to bear.

b. A source of great worry or stress; weight: The burden of economic sacrifice rests on the workers of the plant.

3. A responsibility or duty: The burden of organizing the campaign fell to me.

4. Nautical

a. The amount of cargo that a vessel can carry.

b. The weight of the cargo carried by a vessel at one time.

5. The amount of a disease-causing entity present in an organism.

tr.v. bur·dened, bur·den·ing, bur·dens

1. To weigh down; oppress.

2. To load or overload.

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[Middle English, from Old English byrthen; see bher-¹ in Indo-European roots.]

Synonyms: burden¹, affliction, cross, trial, tribulation
These nouns denote something onerous or troublesome: the burden of a guilty conscience; indebtedness that is an affliction; a temper that is her cross; a troublemaker who is a trial to the teacher; suffered many tribulations in rising from poverty. See Also Synonyms at substance.

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bur·den ²  (bûrdn)

n.

1. A principal or recurring idea; a theme: "The burden of what he said was to defend enthusiastically the conservative aristocracy" (J.A. Froude). See Synonyms at substance.

2. Music

a. The chorus or refrain of a composition, especially of a 15th-century carol.

b. A drone, as of a bagpipe or pedal point.

c. Archaic The bass accompaniment to a song.

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[Variant of bourdon.]

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burden¹

n

1. something that is carried; load

2. something that is exacting, oppressive, or difficult to bear the burden of responsibility Related adjective onerous

3. (Transport / Nautical Terms) Nautical

a.  the cargo capacity of a ship

b.  the weight of a ship's cargo

vb (tr)

1. (sometimes foll by up) to put or impose a burden on; load

2. to weigh down; oppress the old woman was burdened with cares

[Old English byrthen; related to beran to bear¹, Old Frisian berthene burden, Old High German burdin]

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burden²

n

1. (Music, other) a line of words recurring at the end of each verse of a ballad or similar song; chorus or refrain

2. (Literature / Rhetoric) the principal or recurrent theme of a speech, book, etc.

3. (Music, other) another word for bourdon

[from Old French bourdon bass horn, droning sound, of imitative origin]

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Burden a fixed quantity of a commodity; a heavy load; the chorus of a song. See also charge, load, trust.

Examples: burden of armour, 1595; of brass [debts], 1601; of corn, 1523; of despair, 1812; of gold, 1440; of rushes, 1560; of sin, 1303; of sorrows, 1374; of steel [120 lb.]; of thorns, 1449; of verse, 1598; of weeds, 1527.

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Burden 

albatross around the neck Burden, weight; any inhibiting encumbrance. In Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798), the slayer of the albatross—a bird of good omen to sailors—was punished by having the dead bird hung about his neck. Though within the context of the poem the dead albatross symbolizes guilt and punishment for sin, its contemporary use rarely carries this connotation. Often an albatross around one’s neck is no more than a burdensome annoyance, a “drag” that inhibits one’s freedom or lessens one’s pleasure.

ball and chain A wife; one’s girl friend or mistress; any person perceived as a burden or hindrance. This figurative meaning of ball and chain is derived from the iron ball which is secured by a chain to the leg of a prisoner in order to prevent escape. Insofar as having a wife inhibits one’s freedom, this slang expression is apt

He deliberately attempted to commit suicide by askin’ me “How’s the ball and chain?” meanin’ my wife. (Collier’s, June 25, 1921)

cross to bear A painful burden or affliction; an oppressive encumbrance. The expression derives from the heavy cross which Jesus was forced to carry up Mount Calvary, and upon which he was subsequently crucified. Though the phrase most often applies to serious illness, pain, or handicaps, it is frequently extended to include any bothersome annoyance, any unpleasant person or circumstance that must be endured.

a millstone around the neck A heavy burden, an onus, a cross. A millstone is either of a pair of round, weighty stones between which grain and other like materials are ground in a mill.

The mill-stone intended for the necks of those vermin … the dealers in corn, was found to fall upon the heads of the consumers. (Jeremy Bentham, Defence of Usury, 1787)

The metaphor is said to have been suggested by the Biblical passage (Matthew 18:6) in which Jesus warns those who would corrupt the pure and humble nature of children:

But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

a monkey on one’s back A depressing, often controlling burden; a cross to bear; an addiction or dependence. This phrase may be a variation of the obsolete a turkey on one’s back, but the implication remains the same: an addict carries an extra burden, one demanding a large, if not total, commitment of time, effort, and money to support.

Having a monkey on your back … always worked out logically to be the first purpose in a junkie’s life. (E. R. Johnson, God Keepers, 1970)

white elephant An unwanted or useless possession that is difficult to dispose of; a possession that costs more to keep and maintain than it is worth. This expression probably alludes to the albino elephants which were once considered sacred in Siam (now Thailand). Since an elephant of any color is inconvenient and expensive to own, it was purportedly a custom for a king to bestow one of these unique white elephants as a gift upon a courtier or other person whom he wished to subject to financial ruin. In the United States, tag sales, garage sales, and rummage sales are often appropriately nicknamed white elephant sales.

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burden, refrain, chorus - The burden is the main theme or gist of a speech, book, or argument—or the refrain or chorus of a song.

See also related terms for refrain.

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	burden - an onerous or difficult concern; "the burden of responsibility"; "that's a load off my mind" encumbrance, onus, incumbrance, load headache, worry, vexation, concern - something or someone that causes anxiety; a source of unhappiness; "New York traffic is a constant concern"; "it's a major worry" dead weight - an oppressive encumbrance fardel - a burden (figuratively in the form of a bundle) imposition - an uncalled-for burden; "he listened but resented the imposition" pill - something unpleasant or offensive that must be tolerated or endured; "his competitor's success was a bitter pill to take"
	2.	burden - weight to be borne or conveyed       load, loading burthen - a variant of `burden' dead load - a constant load on a structure (e.g. a bridge) due to the weight of the supported structure itself live load, superload - a variable load on a structure (e.g. a bridge) such as moving traffic millstone - any load that is difficult to carry overburden, overload - an excessive burden overload - an electrical load that exceeds the available electrical power weight - an artifact that is heavy
	3.	burden - the central meaning or theme of a speech or literary work gist, essence, effect, core meaning, signification, import, significance - the message that is intended or expressed or signified; "what is the meaning of this sentence"; "the significance of a red traffic light"; "the signification of Chinese characters"; "the import of his announcement was ambiguous"
	4.	burden - the central idea that is expanded in a document or discourse idea, thought - the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about; "it was not a good idea"; "the thought never entered my mind"
Verb	1.	burden - weight down with a load               burthen, weight, weight down overburden - load with excessive weight plumb - weight with lead charge - fill or load to capacity; "charge the wagon with hay" saddle - load or burden; encumber; "he saddled me with that heavy responsibility" disburden, unburden - take the burden off; remove the burden from; "unburden the donkey"
	2.	burden - impose a task upon, assign a responsibility to; "He charged her with cleaning up all the files over the weekend" saddle, charge overburden - burden with too much work or responsibility bear down - exert a force or cause a strain upon; "This tax bears down on the lower middle class" flood out, overwhelm, deluge - charge someone with too many tasks command, require - make someone do something adjure - command solemnly

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burden

noun

1. trouble, care, worry, trial, weight, responsibility, stress, strain, anxiety, sorrow, grievance, affliction, onus, albatross, millstone, encumbrance Her illness will be an impossible burden on him.

2. load, weight, pack, bundle, cargo, freight, bale, consignment, encumbrance, charge She heaved her burden into the back.

verb

weigh down, worry, load, tax, strain, bother, overwhelm, handicap, oppress, inconvenience, overload, saddle with, encumber, trammel, incommode We decided not to burden him with the news.

Related words
adjective onerous

Translations

burden [ˈbɜːdn]

A. N

1. (= load) → carga f; (= weight) → peso m

2. (fig) [of taxes, years] → peso m, carga f
the burden of proof lies with him → él lleva la carga de la prueba
to be a burden to sb → ser una carga para algn
he carries a heavy burden → tiene que cargar con una gran responsabilidad
to make sb's life a burden → amargar la vida a algn

3. (Naut) → arqueo m

4. (= chief theme) [of speech etc] → tema m principal

5. (= chorus) [of song] → estribillo m

B. VT → cargar (with con) to be burdened with → tener que cargar con
don't burden me with your troubles → no me vengas con tus problemas

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burden [ˈbɜː^rd^ən]

n

(= load) → fardeau m, charge f

[responsibility] → fardeau m, charge f
to be a burden to sb, to be a burden on sb → être un fardeau pour qn

the burden of proof → la charge de la preuve

vt
to burden sb with sth [+ problem, news] → accabler qn de qch

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burden¹

n

(lit) → Last f; it puts too much of a burden on him/the engine → das überlastet ihn/den Motor; beast of burden → Lasttier nt

(fig) → Belastung f → (on, to für); he has such a burden of responsibility → er hat eine schwere Last an Verantwortung zu tragen; burden of taxation → steuerliche Belastung, Steuerlast f; I don’t want to be a burden to you → ich möchte Ihnen nicht zur Last fallen; the burden of proof is on him → er muss den Beweis dafür erbringen or liefern; (Jur) → er trägt die Beweislast

(Naut) → Tragfähigkeit f, → Tragkraft f

vt → belasten; to be burdened by guilt/regret → von Schuldgefühlen/Bedauern geplagt sein

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burden²

n

(of song) → Refrain m, → Kehrreim m

(of speech, essay etc) → Grundgedanke m

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burden [ˈbɜːdn]

1. n (load) → carico, peso (fig) (of years, responsibility) → peso; (of taxes, payment) → onere m
the burden of proof lies with him → spetta a lui l'onere della prova
to be a burden to sb → essere di peso a qn

2. vt to burden (with) (cares) → opprimere (con)
burdened with debts → oberato/a di debiti

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burden

n burden [ˈbəːdn]

1 something to be carried He carried a heavy burden up the hill; The ox is sometimes a beast of burden (= an animal that carries things). las, vrag حِمْلٌ товар břemeno byrde die Last φορτίο carga kandam بار؛ محموله taakka fardeau מַשָׂא बोझ teret teher beban byrði carico, soma 荷 짐 našta nastu nesējs dzīvnieks beban last, vracht bør, byrde, last ciężar fardo povară ноша, тяжесть bremeno tovor teret börda, last สิ่งที่ต้องแบกขึ้นเขา yük 擔子 вага; ноша بوجھ، وزن ، بار gánh nặng 担子

2 something difficult to carry or withstand the burden of taxation. las عِب ء бреме břímě, tíha byrde die Bürde βάρος, άχθος carga koorem بار غصه یا مسئولیت taakka poids écrasant נֶטֶל बोझ opterećenje teher beban byrði fardello, carico 重荷 부담 našta slogs; nasta beban cukai last, druk byrde brzemię fardo sarcină бремя bremeno, ťarcha breme teret börda ภาระ yük 重擔 тягар ناگوار چیز gánh nặng (thuế) 负担

v

to put a responsibility etc on (someone) burdened with cares. belas يُثْقِلُ عَلى، يُرْهِقُ товаря zatěžovat, obtěžovat bebyrde belasten φορτώνω, επιβαρύνω με cargar a alguien koormama بار مسئولیتی بر دوش کسی نهادن sälyttää vastuu charger de לְהַעֲמִיס עַל लादना opteretiti megterhel membebankan íþyngja caricare 重荷を負わせる 부담을 지우다 apsunkinti, apkrauti uzkraut; apgrūtināt; uzvelt nastu membebani belasten tynge på, legge byrde på obciążyć sobrecarregar a împovăra (cu) обременять zaťažiť obremeniti, naprtiti opteretiti betunga รับภาระ ağır yük altına sokmak, yüklemek 賦予重任 обтяжувати ذمہ داری ڈالنا đè nặng lên 使负重担

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burden → عبء břemeno byrde Last φορτίο carga taakka fardeau teret fardello 荷物 짐 last byrde ciężar carga ноша börda ภาระ yük gánh nặng 负担