tons

Heaps and heaps

Tons is the plural of ton, a unit of weight equal to 2,000 pounds (short ton) or 2,240 pounds (long ton).

More commonly, tons is an informal intensifier meaning a great deal: I have tons of work to do, Thanks tons.

The casual usage far outpaces the precise measurement in everyday speech.

quantity

loads

Large quantities

heapsLarge informal quantities
massesBulk or populace
pilesMultiple heaped accumulations

stacks · bunches · oodles · scads · slew · gobs · boatloads · truckloads · bucketloads · mountains

weight

kilograms

Metric mass units

poundsMass measurement units
metricStandard of measurement
deadweightInert, unproductive mass

cargo · freight · ballast · payload · weighbridge · scale · displacement · gross weight · net weight · shipping

pressure

hydraulic

Relating to pressurized liquids

compressReduce volume by force
crushCompress with force
forceStrength or compulsion

squeeze · clamp · compression · piston · strain · compaction · bear down · squash · pulverize · flatten

Categories

measurementscales, gauging, balance, metering, gram
Amountsa lot, a few, a little, some, many
excessexcess, too much, excessive, excessiveness, overabundance
Hyperbolea zillion, bazillion, gazillion, bajillion, zillion
weighingscales, scale, weight, mass, grams
quantitiessome, many, few, amount, several

Opposites

quantity/amount

tonsnone

Not a single one

nothing · zero · few · little · next to nothing

weight/heaviness

Units of weight

grams · featherweight · light as a feather · milligrams · pounds

Phrases

tons ofA great quantity
tone of voiceVocal quality conveying emotion
tone downReduce intensity or volume
dial toneSound indicating phone readiness
set the toneCreate prevailing atmosphere
tone deafCannot perceive pitch differences

Family

tone, ton, toned, monotone, tones, intonation, intone, undertone, overtone

Familiarity: Top 3,000
Profile: Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Everyday, not technical · Rated G