load (loads plural & 3rd person present) (loading present participle) (loaded past tense & past participle )
1 verb If you load a vehicle or a container, you put a large quantity of things into it.
The three men seemed to have finished loading the truck... V n
Mr. Dambar had loaded his plate with lasagne... V n with n
They load all their equipment into backpacks... V n into/onto n
She deposited the loaded tray. V-ed
Load up means the same as load., phrasal verb
I've just loaded my truck up... V n P
The giggling couple loaded up their red sports car and drove off... V P n (not pron)
We loaded up carts with all the blankets, bandages, medication, water we could spare... V P n with n
She loaded up his collection of vintage wines into crates. V P n into/onto n, Also V n P with/into/onto n
loading n-sing usu the N of n
...the loading of baggage onto international flights.
2 n-count A load is something, usually a large quantity or heavy object, which is being carried.
He drove by with a big load of hay..., He was carrying a very heavy load.
3 quant If you refer to a load of people or things or loads of them, you are emphasizing that there are a lot of them.
INFORMAL QUANT of n-uncount/pl-n (emphasis)
I've got loads of money..., His people came up with a load of embarrassing information..., ...a load of kids.
4 verb When someone loads a weapon such as a gun, they put a bullet or missile in it so that it is ready to use.
I knew how to load and handle a gun... V n
He carried a loaded gun... V-ed
5 verb To load a camera or other piece of equipment means to put film, tape, or data into it so that it is ready to use.
A photographer from the newspaper was loading his camera with film... V n with n
The data can subsequently be loaded on a computer for processing. V n into/onto/on n
6 n-count You can refer to the amount of work you have to do as a load.
She's taking some of the load off the secretaries.
7 n-count The load of a system or piece of equipment, especially a system supplying electricity or a computer, is the extent to which it is being used at a particular time.
An efficient bulb may lighten the load of power stations..., Several processors can share the load of handling data in a single program.
8 n-sing The loadon something is the amount of weight that is pressing down on it or the amount of strain that it is under.
Some of these chairs have flattened feet which spread the load on the ground..., High blood pressure imposes an extra load on the heart.
9 →
loaded →
a load off your mind →
mind load up →
load 1
-load (-loads plural )-load combines with nouns referring to a vehicle or container to form nouns that refer to the total amount of something that the vehicle or container mentioned can hold or carry. comb in n-count
The first plane-loads of food, children's clothing and medical supplies began arriving., ...a lorry-load of sheep on their way across Europe.
