BURDEN

That which is borne or carried; a load. Plants with goodly burden bowing. Shak.

That which is borne with labor or difficulty; that which is grievous, wearisome, or oppressive. Deaf, giddy, helpless, left alone, To all my friends a burden grown. Swift.

The capacity of a vessel, or the weight of cargo that she will carry; as, a ship of a hundred tons burden.

The tops or heads of stream-work which lie over the stream of tin.

The proportion of ore and flux to fuel, in the charge of a blast furnace. Raymond.

A fixed quantity of certain commodities; as, a burden of gad steel, 120 pounds.

A birth. [Obs. & R.] Shak. Beast of burden, an animal employed in carrying burdens. -- Burden of proof Etym: [L. onus probandi] (Law), the duty of proving a particular position in a court of law, a failure in the performance of which duty calls for judgment against the party on whom the duty is imposed.

To encumber with weight (literal or figurative); to lay a heavy load upon; to load. I mean not that other men be eased, and ye burdened. 2 Cor. viii. 13.

To oppress with anything grievous or trying; to overload; as, to burden a nation with taxes. My burdened heart would break. Shak.

To impose, as a load or burden; to lay or place as a burden (something heavy or objectionable). [R.] It is absurd to burden this act on Cromwell. Coleridge.

The verse repeated in a song, or the return of the theme at the end of each stanza; the chorus; refrain. Hence: That which is often repeated or which is dwelt upon; the main topic; as, the burden of a prayer. I would sing my song without a burden. Shak.

The drone of a bagpipe. Ruddiman.

A club. [Obs.] Spenser.