Nautical. any heavy material carried temporarily or permanently in a vessel to provide desired draft and stability.
Aeronautics. something heavy, as bags of sand, placed in the car of a balloon for control of altitude and, less often, of attitude, or placed in an aircraft to control the position of the center of gravity.
anything that gives mental, moral, or political stability or steadiness: the ballast of a steady income.
gravel, broken stone, slag, etc., placed between and under the ties of a railroad to give stability, provide drainage, and distribute loads.
Electricity.
Also called ballast resistor .a device, often a resistor, that maintains the current in a circuit at a constant value by varying its resistance in order to counteract changes in voltage.
a device that maintains the current through a fluorescent or mercury lamp at the desired constant value, sometimes also providing the necessary starting voltage and current.
verb (used with object)
to furnish with ballast: to ballast a ship.
to give steadiness to; keep steady: parental responsibilities that ballast a person.
Idioms for ballast
in ballast, Nautical. carrying only ballast; carrying no cargo.
Origin of ballast
1450–1500; <Middle Low German, perhaps ultimately <Scandinavian; compare Old Danish, Old Swedish barlast, equivalent to barbare1 + last load; see last4
OTHER WORDS FROM ballast
bal·last·er,nounbal·last·ic[buh-las-tik], /bəˈlæs tɪk/, adjectiveo·ver·bal·last,verb (used with object)sub·bal·last,noun
But are the ballast masses, so critical for the Apollo entry guidance to work properly, really gone as they should be?
Curiosity’s Mars Landing Narrated Moment by Moment by Flight Director Keith Comeaux|Keith Comeaux|August 7, 2012|DAILY BEAST
It had no other ballast than himself, his wife and children, and the Christmas fare.
The Visionary|Jonas Lie
After passing a week at Gibraltar, to take in some dollars, we sailed for New Orleans, in ballast.
Ned Myers|James Fenimore Cooper
They got into the car, and the bags of ballast were tossed overboard.
Frank Merriwell's Bravery|Burt L. Standish
The prisoners were handcuffed, or chained together, and placed in the hold, on the ballast.
On the Spanish Main|John Masefield
Poverty and responsibility had given him ballast, and love for his own little brood had softened his heart and vitalized his soul.
Little Journeys To The Homes Of Great Teachers|Elbert Hubbard
British Dictionary definitions for ballast
ballast
/ (ˈbæləst) /
noun
any dense heavy material, such as lead or iron pigs, used to stabilize a vessel, esp one that is not carrying cargo
crushed rock, broken stone, etc, used for the foundation of a road or railway track
coarse aggregate of sandy gravel, used in making concrete
anything that provides stability or weight
electronicsa device for maintaining the current in a circuit
verb(tr)
to give stability or weight to
Word Origin for ballast
C16: probably from Low German; related to Old Danish, Old Swedish barlast, literally: bare load (without commercial value), from bar bare, mere + last load, burden