Weight that is inert and unprofitable; especially cargo that takes up space but doesn't generate revenue, or a person or thing that is a burden.
From 'dead' (lacking productive value) plus 'weight' (from Old Norse 'þungi'). Originally a shipping term for cargo that was heavy but worthless, then generalized to any burden.
'Deadweight' reveals how economics shapes language—ship captains needed a word for cargo that cost them fuel and space without making them money, so maritime jargon created this term that now describes anyone being a burden.
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