The greater or main part of something, an old use now found mainly in historical text.
Examples
The heft of the harvest was stored before the first frost.
By noon, the heft of the work was already done.
The heft of his estate passed to his eldest daughter.
Only a few pages survive, though the heft of the manuscript was once complete.
In this old account, heft means the greater part, not physical weight.
Similar words
bulk
majority
greater part
main part
Lift or test the weight
verb
physical
neutral
To lift, hold, or carry something heavy, or to lift it briefly in order to judge its weight.
Examples
She hefted the suitcase onto the luggage rack.
He hefted each melon before choosing the heavier one.
Can you heft that box into the van by yourself?
The porter did not heft the trunk easily, even with both hands.
I hefted the parcel to judge whether it needed extra postage.
Similar words
lift
hoist
heave
raise
lug
carry
Etymology
Formed in the mid-15th century from heave, probably following pairs such as weave and weft. The verb meaning to lift or test weight appeared later, in the 17th century.
FAQ
What does heft mean?
Heft can mean felt physical weight, effective influence or substance, or the action of lifting something heavy.
What is the difference between heft and weight?
Weight can be measured exactly, while heft usually describes how substantial something feels when handled.
What does political heft mean?
Political heft is the influence or authority needed to affect decisions and events.
How is heft used as a verb?
To heft something is to lift or carry it, often with effort or to judge how heavy it is.
Does heft have an old meaning?
Yes. Heft once meant the greater or main part of something, but that sense is now archaic.
Where does heft come from?
Heft was formed from heave in the mid-15th century, probably by analogy with pairs such as weave and weft.
Comments & contributions
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Proud Eagle
Aug 4
never connected it with hefty before, but now it looks obvious
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Loyal Donkey
Jul 30
German learners, careful: English heft is not das Heft. Das Heft is a school exercise book, a magazine issue, that sort of thing. I still misread this word for half a second.
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Eager Donkey
Aug 3
Genau. In my head Heft is still the small notebook from school, not weight at all
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Earnest Pelican
Jul 28
i got corrected once for saying "it has a big heft". Native speaker changed it to "some heft" or "a lot of heft". So it behaves more like an uncountable noun most of the time.
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Cosmic Peacock
Jul 26
With the verb, I would save it for the moment of lifting: she hefted the suitcase onto the bed. If she carried it round the airport for twenty minutes, that's carried or lugged, not really hefted.
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Jolly Hawk
Jul 26
yep, one action vs the whole miserable journey. "lugged it across campus" is the one i hear
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Cozy Robin
Jul 16
For knives, pens, game pieces, stuff like that, "heft" is usually a compliment. If a cheap controller has no heft, ppl mean it feels plasticky, not that they needed an exact weight.
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Subtle Whale
Jul 24
mechanical keyboard reviews too. heavy case = more "premium" somehow, even when your desk disagrees lol
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Ebony Bison
Jul 11
UK ear here: I understand heft, especially in reviews like "emotional heft", but I would not really say "this mug has heft" in normal chat. I'd probably say it feels weighty or solid.
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Jaunty Leopard
Jul 14
US here and "this pan has good heft" sounds totally normal to me, mostly for cookware and tools.