heavy as lead
Meaning
Extremely heavy; very weighty (like lead). Often used as a vivid comparison rather than a fixed idiom.
Origin
Based on lead’s high density and heaviness; people use lead as a familiar benchmark for “very heavy,” forming the simile “(as) heavy as lead.”
Notes
More a descriptive simile than a standard idiom. Used to emphasize physical heaviness (or a leaden, sluggish feeling) in narrative or descriptive writing.
Examples
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After the long hike, my backpack felt heavy as lead.
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When he heard the bad news, his heart turned heavy as lead.
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The wet wool coat was heavy as lead by the time I reached the door.
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I barely slept, and my eyelids were heavy as lead all morning.
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The silence in the room was heavy as lead after her comment.
Grammar & Usage Notes
Commonly appears as “as heavy as lead” (as…as simile) or predicatively “It felt heavy as lead.” Can be modified (“so heavy as lead”) but the comparison to lead is the core.
Synonyms
- very heavy
- extremely heavy
- weighty
- leaden
Antonyms
- light as a feather