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burden

n. · v.
US //ˈbɝdən// UK //bˈɜːdən// bur·den
  1. 1 a responsibility (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    a duty or responsibility that is hard to deal with.

    a duty, responsibility, or emotional weight that is difficult to bear.

    Example

    The cost of the new house became a heavy financial burden for the family.

    Example

    The administrative burden placed upon the teaching staff has increased significantly since the introduction of the new assessment protocols.
  2. 2 a heavy load (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    a physical load that is heavy to carry.

    a physical load or weight being carried.

    Example

    The donkey struggled to walk under the heavy burden of the wood.

    Example

    The porters distributed the burden equally among the team to ensure they could reach the base camp before nightfall.
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  1. 3 medical amount (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Medicine

    the total amount of something harmful, like a virus or poison, in a body.

    the total quantity of a harmful substance, parasite, or pathogen present in an organism.

    Example

    The doctor checked the patient's viral burden to see if the medicine was working.

    Example

    The study aimed to quantify the total body burden of heavy metals in the local population following the industrial accident.
  2. 4 recurring theme (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Literary Music

    the main idea or a part of a song that repeats.

    a recurring theme or the chorus of a song; the central idea of a piece of writing.

    Example

    The burden of his speech was that we must all work together.

    Example

    The haunting burden of the ballad was repeated by the choir after every stanza, creating a sense of inevitable tragedy.
  3. 5 to weigh down (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    to give someone a difficult job or a lot of things to carry.

    to load someone with a physical or figurative weight; to encumber.

    Example

    I don't want to burden you with my problems while you are on holiday.

    Example

    The company was heavily burdened by debt, making it difficult to attract new investors for the expansion project.
Etymology 1

Inherited from Middle English burden, birden, burthen, birthen, byrthen, from Old English byrden, byrþen, from Proto-West Germanic burþini, from burþī, from Proto-Germanic burþį̄, from Proto-Indo-European bʰer- (“to carry, bear”).

Etymology 2

Inherited from Middle English burdoun (“accompaniment”), from Old French bordon (“drone”), from Medieval Latin burdō. Doublet of bourdon.

Word family

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