Definition of "burden" []

• Something that is carried. (noun)
• Something that is emotionally difficult to bear. (noun)
• A source of great worry or stress; weight: The burden of economic sacrifice rests on the workers of the plant. (noun)
• A responsibility or duty: The burden of organizing the campaign fell to me. (noun)
• Nautical The amount of cargo that a vessel can carry. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "He must bear his burden -- the _burden of detection and of punishment_ -- alone."
• "Indeed, much research on carers of ill people already uses the term burden to describe the ill person's needs in relation to the carer without understanding their relationship and questioning the use of a value laden term."
• "Wallace has accepted that the burden is hers; she must care for her son for the rest of her life."