burden

1 of 3

noun (1)

bur·​den ˈbər-dᵊn How to pronounce burden (audio)
Synonyms of burden
1
a
: something that is carried : load
dropped the burden of firewood
b
: duty, responsibility
bore the burden of caring for their aging parents
lowering the tax burden on the middle class
2
: something oppressive or worrisome
a heavy burden of guilt
was a huge financial burden on his family
3
a
: the bearing of a load
—usually used in the phrase beast of burden
b
: capacity for carrying cargo
a ship of a hundred tons burden
4
: load sense 11
worm burdens of cattle
cancer burden

burden

2 of 3

verb

burdened; burdening ˈbərd-niŋ How to pronounce burden (audio)
ˈbər-dᵊn-iŋ

transitive verb

: load, oppress
I will not burden you with a lengthy account.

burden

3 of 3

noun (2)

1
a
: a central topic : theme
the burden of the argument
b
: chorus, refrain
2
archaic : a bass or accompanying part
I would sing my song without a burden; thou bringest me out of tune.—Shakespeare

Synonyms of burden

Relevance

Noun (1)

Verb

Noun (2)

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of burden in a Sentence

Noun (1) the early settlers often used horses to carry their burdens the burden of homework prevented the youngster from joining his friends at the game Verb I don't wish to burden you with my problems. burdened the dog with a little backpack Noun (2) had some trouble coming up with a burden for the song
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
To help ease that burden, the Aurora Public Schools Foundation opened its Educator Emporium. — Tori Mason, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026 Climate change, rising home rebuilding costs and other factors have driven up financial risk for insurers, who are passing that financial burden on to consumers, at least in part, insurance experts said. — Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026
Verb
Where The Algorithm Fails My primary focus today is healthcare operations, an industry historically burdened by manual labor, convoluted billing systems and razor-thin margins. — David Farbman, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026 Younger people are similarly cost-burdened, including 37% of those age 25 to 34 and 31% of those 35 to 44, the Joint Center has reported. — Paula Span, Miami Herald, 29 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for burden

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1) and Verb

Middle English, from Old English byrthen; akin to Old English beran to carry — more at bear

Noun (2)

Middle English burdoun, from Anglo-French burdun a drone bass, of imitative origin

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1541, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of burden was before the 12th century

Phrases Containing burden

Rhymes for burden

See All Rhymes for burden

Browse Nearby Words

Burdekin vine
burden
Burden's grass
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Burden.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/burden. Accessed 8 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

burden

1 of 2 noun
bur·​den ˈbərd-ᵊn How to pronounce burden (audio)
1
a
: something carried : load
b
: something taken as a duty or responsibility
tax burdens
2
: something hard to take
a burden of sorrow
3
a
: the carrying of loads
beast of burden
b
: capacity for carrying cargo
a ship of 100 tons burden
burden verb

burden

2 of 2 noun
1
: the refrain or chorus of a song
2
: a main idea : gist
Etymology

Noun

Old English byrthen "load, burden"

Noun

an altered form of earlier bourdon "a refrain or chorus of a song," from Middle English burdoun (same meaning), from early French burdun "bass horn"

Medical Definition

burden

noun
bur·​den ˈbərd-ᵊn How to pronounce burden (audio)
: load sense 3
worm burden
cancer burden

Legal Definition

burden

noun
bur·​den
1
: something that is a duty, obligation, or responsibility
the prosecution has the burden of proving every element of the offense
the statute imposes undue burdens
burden of pleading the necessary elements
2
: burden of proof

More from Merriam-Webster on burden

Nglish: Translation of burden for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of nurture

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All