"tip the scales" meaning in English

See tip the scales in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

Audio: En-au-tip the scales.ogg [Australia] Forms: tips the scales [present, singular, third-person], tipping the scales [participle, present], tipped the scales [participle, past], tipped the scales [past]
Head templates: {{en-verb|*|head=tip the scales}} tip the scales (third-person singular simple present tips the scales, present participle tipping the scales, simple past and past participle tipped the scales)
  1. (idiomatic) To turn to one side of a balanced situation. Tags: idiomatic Synonyms: turn the scale, tip the scale Derived forms: tip the scales at Related terms: thumb on the scale Translations (to turn a balanced situation to one side): kääntää tilanne (Finnish), vaikuttaa ratkaisevasti (Finnish), kallistaa vaaka [uncommon] (Finnish), faire pencher la balance (French), przechylać szalę [imperfective] (Polish), przechylić szalę [perfective] (Polish), być języczkiem u wagi (Polish), переве́сить (perevésitʹ) [perfective] (Russian), обеспе́чить переве́с (obespéčitʹ perevés) [perfective] (Russian), declinar la balanza (Spanish), inclinar la balanza (Spanish)

Download JSON data for tip the scales meaning in English (4.1kB)

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "tips the scales",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "tipping the scales",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "tipped the scales",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "tipped the scales",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*",
        "head": "tip the scales"
      },
      "expansion": "tip the scales (third-person singular simple present tips the scales, present participle tipping the scales, simple past and past participle tipped the scales)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
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          "source": "w"
        },
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          "name": "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
          "parents": [
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          "name": "English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
          "parents": [
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          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "derived": [
        {
          "word": "tip the scales at"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1935-1936, Robert E. Howard, The Hour of the Dragon",
          "text": "\"But an uprising in the central provinces would tip the scales for us!\" exclaimed Conan.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2022 November 16, Philip Haigh, “German study puts hydrogen at the back of the queue”, in RAIL, number 970, page 51",
          "text": "That lends further credence to the argument that continuing to use diesel in low and limited circumstances makes sense. Unless, of course, we use so little across the country that it becomes rare and expensive. That might tip the scales against it, but I can't see that happening any time soon.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To turn to one side of a balanced situation."
      ],
      "id": "en-tip_the_scales-en-verb-LZlMbyv2",
      "links": [
        [
          "turn",
          "turn"
        ],
        [
          "side",
          "side"
        ],
        [
          "balanced",
          "balanced"
        ],
        [
          "situation",
          "situation"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) To turn to one side of a balanced situation."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "thumb on the scale"
        }
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "turn the scale"
        },
        {
          "word": "tip the scale"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "word": "kääntää tilanne"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "word": "vaikuttaa ratkaisevasti"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "tags": [
            "uncommon"
          ],
          "word": "kallistaa vaaka"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "word": "faire pencher la balance"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "tags": [
            "imperfective"
          ],
          "word": "przechylać szalę"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "tags": [
            "perfective"
          ],
          "word": "przechylić szalę"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "word": "być języczkiem u wagi"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "perevésitʹ",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "tags": [
            "perfective"
          ],
          "word": "переве́сить"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "obespéčitʹ perevés",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "tags": [
            "perfective"
          ],
          "word": "обеспе́чить переве́с"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "word": "declinar la balanza"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
          "word": "inclinar la balanza"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-tip the scales.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/8/8b/En-au-tip_the_scales.ogg/En-au-tip_the_scales.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/En-au-tip_the_scales.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "tip the scales"
}
{
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "tip the scales at"
    }
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "tips the scales",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "tipping the scales",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "tipped the scales",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "tipped the scales",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "*",
        "head": "tip the scales"
      },
      "expansion": "tip the scales (third-person singular simple present tips the scales, present participle tipping the scales, simple past and past participle tipped the scales)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "thumb on the scale"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
        "English idioms",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English predicates",
        "English terms with audio links",
        "English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English verbs"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1935-1936, Robert E. Howard, The Hour of the Dragon",
          "text": "\"But an uprising in the central provinces would tip the scales for us!\" exclaimed Conan.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2022 November 16, Philip Haigh, “German study puts hydrogen at the back of the queue”, in RAIL, number 970, page 51",
          "text": "That lends further credence to the argument that continuing to use diesel in low and limited circumstances makes sense. Unless, of course, we use so little across the country that it becomes rare and expensive. That might tip the scales against it, but I can't see that happening any time soon.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To turn to one side of a balanced situation."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "turn",
          "turn"
        ],
        [
          "side",
          "side"
        ],
        [
          "balanced",
          "balanced"
        ],
        [
          "situation",
          "situation"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) To turn to one side of a balanced situation."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-tip the scales.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/8/8b/En-au-tip_the_scales.ogg/En-au-tip_the_scales.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/En-au-tip_the_scales.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "turn the scale"
    },
    {
      "word": "tip the scale"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "word": "kääntää tilanne"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "word": "vaikuttaa ratkaisevasti"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "tags": [
        "uncommon"
      ],
      "word": "kallistaa vaaka"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "word": "faire pencher la balance"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "tags": [
        "imperfective"
      ],
      "word": "przechylać szalę"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "tags": [
        "perfective"
      ],
      "word": "przechylić szalę"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "word": "być języczkiem u wagi"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "perevésitʹ",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "tags": [
        "perfective"
      ],
      "word": "переве́сить"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "obespéčitʹ perevés",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "tags": [
        "perfective"
      ],
      "word": "обеспе́чить переве́с"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "word": "declinar la balanza"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "to turn a balanced situation to one side",
      "word": "inclinar la balanza"
    }
  ],
  "word": "tip the scales"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-04-26 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-21 using wiktextract (93a6c53 and 21a9316). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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