lightweight

[ lahyt-weyt ]
See synonyms for lightweight on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. being lighter in weight, texture, etc., than another item or object of identical use, quality, or function: a lightweight topcoat;a lightweight alloy for ship construction.

  1. without seriousness of purpose; trivial or trifling: lightweight reading.

  2. of or relating to a lightweight: He's the new lightweight contender.

  3. (of a horse, especially a hunter) able to carry up to 165 pounds (75 kilograms).

noun
  1. a person of less than average weight.

  2. Informal. a person who is of little influence, importance, or effect.

  1. a boxer or other contestant intermediate in weight between a featherweight, and a welterweight, especially a professional boxer weighing between 126 and 135 pounds (56.7–61 kilograms).

Origin of lightweight

1
First recorded in 1765–75; light2 + weight

Other words from lightweight

  • ul·tra·light·weight, adjective

Words Nearby lightweight

Other definitions for light weight (2 of 2)

light weight

nounNautical.

Origin of light weight

2
First recorded in 1765–75

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use lightweight in a sentence

  • You do have a recollection that those rods were a very lightweight metal?

    Warren Commission (3 of 26): Hearings Vol. III (of 15) | The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
  • Light as a lightweight acrobat Ahmet Ali had rolled aside, put palm to ground, sprung to his feet.

    The Wind Bloweth | Brian Oswald Donn-Byrne
  • For his one chance was in his youth and the method he had learned from the lightweight champion of the world.

    A Soldier of the Legion | C. N. Williamson
  • In lightweight circles, at any rate, old-fashioned proprieties are still effective.

    Pieces of Hate | Heywood Broun
  • I never saw anything prettier than the way Bert flung him back as though he had been a lightweight.

British Dictionary definitions for lightweight

lightweight

/ (ˈlaɪtˌweɪt) /


adjective
  1. of a relatively light weight

  2. not serious; trivial

noun
  1. a person or animal of a relatively light weight

    • a professional boxer weighing 130–135 pounds (59–61 kg)

    • an amateur boxer weighing 57–60 kg (126–132 pounds)

    • (as modifier): the lightweight contender

  1. a wrestler in a similar weight category (usually 115–126 pounds (52–57 kg))

  2. informal a person of little importance or influence

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012