Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A small, heavy, often decorative object that is placed on loose papers to hold them down.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A small heavy object used to lay on loose papers to keep them from being scattered; especially, one made for the purpose and somewhat decorative, as a slab or marble, a plate of glass, or the like, with or without a bronze or other figure to serve as a handle, or a mass of glass decorated with various objects inclosed in it, and the like.
Wiktionary
- n. A small, decorative, somewhat weighty (and now, highly collectable) object placed on one or more pieces of paper to keep them from fluttering away.
- n. Any object for this purpose.
- n. slang An otherwise useless piece of equipment.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. any object used as a weight to prevent loose papers from being displaced by wind, or otherwise.
- n. See under paper, n.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a weight used to hold down a stack of papers
Etymologies
- paper + weight (Wiktionary)
Examples
“The technical knowledge, training and expertise of a politician, as it relates to computers, software, licensing, or anything more complex than a paperweight, is basically that of a 6 year old child.”
“Someone had picked up the glass paperweight from the table and smashed it to pieces on the hearth-stone.”
“From that point on, the card has been a "paperweight" - literally-and those treasured photos were completely lost.”
“The paperweight is a great little something for father's day.”
“I find it interesting that 'paperweight' takes on the assertion that my pride in my caucasian heritage (Do you ask Latinos to define specifically which form of Latino pride they are partaking - Mexican, Cuban, etc.?) is 'purely a race-based assertion of superiority or merely' fear of losing a position of privilege '... exemplifying the bias that always seems to accompany any notion of' white pride '.”
“Ten million and you have a ubiquitous communications network into which your "paperweight" is now a hugely valuable doorway.”
“He swallowed down the rising inclination to be classical at the expense of good taste, and engulfed, on the top of it, as a kind of paperweight, a vast tumblerful of red Nepenthe wine.”
“The paperweight was the room he was in, and the coral was Julia’s life and his own, fixed in a sort of eternity at the heart of the crystal.”
“Derry's hand lay on it, a "paperweight" that did not move itself off at Blair's motion.”
“She sent a "paperweight", two rotating bronze forms, from her own desk.”
Telegraph.co.uk - Telegraph online, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘paperweight’.
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IMCO - EU nomenclature
includes words of the "Prodcom list"
abaca, abdominal, abrasive, absorbent, absorber, accelerator, accessory, account book, accumulator, acebutolol, acetaldehyde, acetamide and 4515 more...
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Spam Names
Interesting words that came to me in spam emails in the "From" field. Read in pairs by order added, add the initial of your choice, and you'll get a list of "names."
menominee, burbled, abrasives, barrister, unfortunates, strolls, appareled, uncles, removal, elusive, significance, described and 180 more...
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Compounds Entirely Pedestrian
Just what you'd expect.
sunrise, doghouse, upstairs, driveway, daylight, flagpole, keystone, footpath, doorbell, heavyweight, paperweight, tablecloth and 7 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for paperweight.
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