equipoise
Americannoun
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an equal distribution of weight; even balance; equilibrium.
-
a counterpoise.
verb (used with object)
noun
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even balance of weight or other forces; equilibrium
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a counterbalance; counterpoise
verb
Etymology
Origin of equipoise
Explanation
Looking for a really fancy way to say "balance" or "equilibrium"? Then stand up straight and try equipoise on for size. When broken down into its etymological parts, equipoise is simply equi, meaning "equal," plus "poise." Equal poise: a balance of weight, forces or interests. So tight-rope walkers have excellent equipoise, as do balance beam gymnasts. And when the U.S. Senate is made up of half Republicans, half Democrats? There should be some equipoise of power, but that usually just leads to stalemate.
Vocabulary lists containing equipoise
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As Sam Sacks writes of this posthumously published collection of short stories, “Segal never loses her equipoise, or her sense of humor, in these most extreme confrontations with mortality.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
I hoped that during the next decade, the pendulum would swing back from 9/11 overreach and regain some semblance of equipoise.
From Salon ● Apr. 21, 2025
But there are some from across the debate who don't think there is equipoise in this case.
From BBC ● Dec. 8, 2024
In a capital packed with bloviators and arm-twisters, Jackson maintains an equipoise of soft-spoken graciousness, combining intellectual clarity with iron resolve.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 26, 2024
Certainly much of Katherine’s equipoise came from her father, Joshua.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
It’s the sort of thing those who’ve avoided playing Minecraft but still find it intriguing should pay attention to—an exquisite, LEGO-like builder deftly equipoised between structured and freeform play.
From Time ● Dec. 19, 2016
This calling was too precarious to suit his equipoised mind.
From Sages and Heroes of the American Revolution by L. Carroll Judson
July 3.—Whoever wishes to know how, in Mr. Seward's mind, right and law are equipoised, should read the correspondence between the State Department and the Attorney-General in the case of a criminal runaway from Saxony.
From Diary from November 12, 1862, to October 18, 1863 by Adam G. de Gurowski, Count
When the brain is wearied by the passions, appetite and digestion are almost gone….There is nowhere perfect health, save when the passions are well regulated, harmonized, and equipoised.
From Hygienic Physiology : with Special Reference to the Use of Alcoholic Drinks and Narcotics by Joel Dorman Steele
He will be a self-centered, equipoised, and ever master of himself.
From Pushing to the Front by Orison Swett Marden
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
