Weighed in with an opinion

Question

weigh in2 : to bring one's weight or influence to bear especially as a participant, contributor, or mediator  weighed in with an opinion[M-W's Col. Dic/bear (noun)4 : something difficult to do or deal with  the oven is a bear to clean[M-W's Col. Dic.]Is bear "noun" above? If it is then only the above definition of bear (noun) fits there. Is this correct? Please let me know. Thanks.

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

No. 'Bear' in the idiom 'bring to bear' is a verb.

Anonymous · Answer

"To bring one's influence to bear" means to apply one's influence. "To weigh in" is to bring one's views to a discussion. The term is widely used now in the cable television media in the sense of "give an opinion." Someone who "weighs in" gives an opinion, often with expertise behind it. They participate in a discussion when they "weigh in."

"Bring to bear" can be found in freedictionary.com It means "apply" in the sense of "bring pressure to bear" to apply pressure or to bring pressure to the situation.

"Bear" is indeed a verb here in the sense more or less of "to be borne, to be accepted, or even "withstood" but really has no meaning apart from the entire phrase "to bring to bear," to bring into a situation, to apply to a situation. As an idiom, the whole does not really equal the sum of its parts, so consider "to bring to bear" as a verb phrase in the sense more or less of "to apply." Ignore any separate meaning for "bear" here.

The questions you ask show how complicated the English language can be with many exceptions to rules, , and how important it is to interact with native speakers to grasp idiomatic expressions where the meanings of the individual words doesn't make sense in a particular situation. Often the best thing to do in conversation is to guess according to what makes most sense in the situation, as native speakers do when they learn new expressions. "So-and so weighed in with his opinion". A good guess for "weighed in with" is "gave." What else can you likely do with an opinion besides give it or state it?

If pressure was brought to bear on someone," pressure" can be applied, so applied is a good guess.

Otherwise, a dictionary like freedictionary.com can be very helpful.

Weighed in with an opinion

Top answer

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

Related Questions