loaded

Etymology

verb

1. simple past and past participle of load

adj

1. Burdened by some heavy load; packed.
   Let's leave the TV; the car is loaded already.
   With regard to France and Holland, therefore, I muſt think, Sir, and it has always been the general Opinion, that the Subjects of each are more loaded and more oppreſſed with Taxes and Exciſes than the People of this Kingdom ; 1737, The Gentleman's Magazine, volume 7, page 780
   […]the fever began to assume a low type ; the tongue became loaded with a thick brown crust ;[…]. 1812, Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal, volume 8, page 118
   1888, Leonardo Da Vinci, Jean Paul Richter (translator), The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, XIII: Theoretical writings on Architecture, […] and for that reason the arches of the vaults of any apse should never be more loaded than the arches of the principal building.
   What is known concerning supernatural matters is a sort of common deposit, guarded by everybody, and handed down without any intervention on the part of an authority; fuller in one place, scantier in another, or, again, more loaded with external symbols according to the intelligence, the temperament, the organization, the habits, and the manner of the people's life. 1913, Catholic Encyclopedia, Africa
   What had traditionally been a morally neutral sport became loaded with a set of Victorian values. 2011, Matt Rogan, Martin Rogan, Britain and the Olympic Games: Past, Present, Legacy, page 15
2. (of a projectile weapon) Having a live round of ammunition in the chamber.
   No funny business; this heater's loaded!
3. (colloquial) Possessing great wealth.
   He sold his business a couple of years ago and is just loaded.
   She told me that her Dad was loaded / I said "In that case, I'll have rum and coca-cola" 1995, “Common People”, in Jarvis Cocker (lyrics), Different Class, performed by Pulp
   Is he loaded? “Yeah!” How much is he worth? “I don’t know, but I could probably never be poor again. When I see stuff in the paper like, ‘Oh, he’s worth £20m quid’, I ain’t worth that much. I don’t know what I’ve done with my money. […]” 2014-10-11, Simon Hattenstone, “Russell Brand: ‘I want to address the alienation and despair’”, in The Guardian
   And my God, doesn’t it feel good? For a few moments to think of the country as the place of sacred ointments and special spoons, grand cathedrals and epically wealthy, exquisitely dressed people. In that moment we can see our own country in their image: a country that is sober, benign and loaded. 2023-05-08, Nesrine Malik, “The coronation pulled a screen across a desperate, failing nation – just as intended”, in The Guardian, →ISSN
4. (slang) Drunk.
   By the end of the evening, the guests in the club were really loaded.
5. (baseball) Pertaining to a situation where there is a runner at each of the three bases.
   It's bottom of the ninth, the bases are loaded and there are two outs.
6. (dice games, also used figuratively) Of a die or dice: weighted asymmetrically, and so biased to produce predictable throws.
   He was playing with loaded dice and won a fortune.
   The more we invest in a sexual encounter in a particular person, the more loaded the dice in a dating game that we are forever reminded we must play to win. 1996, Elaine Creith, Undressing Lesbian Sex, page 49
   If you add to this the fact that the magistrate and the police sergeant are close friends, then the dice could not have been more loaded against my client. 1997, Joe Slovo, Slovo: The Unfinished Autobiography, page 80
   Horace has been crippled by being set off against the 'sincerity' and 'spontaneity' of these two; when it comes to the Greek lyricists, the dice are even more loaded against our poet, for the Greeks have not only spontaneity and sincerity on their side, but a phalanx of yet more formidable allies […]. 2009, Michèle Lowrie, Horace: Odes and Epodes, page 224
7. (of a question) Designed to produce a predictable answer, or to lay a trap.
   That interviewer is tricky; he asks loaded questions.
   At a press conference held in a Valencia hotel two weeks ago, Jesús “Suso” García Pitarch was asked why Peter Lim had bought the city’s football team in the first place. It was a loaded question, one supporters have pondered often over the last couple of years, and the answer, or the lack of one, felt loaded as well. January 18, 2017, Sid Lowe, “Chaos at Mestalla: Valencia's journey from Champions League to utter disarray”, in the Guardian
8. (of a word or phrase) Having strong connotations that colour the literal meaning and are likely to provoke an emotional response. Sometimes used loosely to describe a word that simply has many different meanings.
   "Ignorant" is a loaded word, often implying lack of intelligence rather than just lack of knowledge.
   The more loaded phrase is the middle one, "she slit his gullet," since it captures a sense of crudeness and suddenness that the other two do not. 2003, L. Susan Bond, Contemporary African American Preaching: Diversity in Theory and Style, page 30
9. (of an item offered for sale, especially an automobile) Equipped with numerous options.
   She went all out; her new car is loaded.
10. (food, colloquial) Covered with a topping or toppings.
    loaded fries
    loaded potato wedges
11. Weighted with lead or similar.
    a loaded cane or whip