outweigh
To be greater or more important than something else.
ExampleIn my view, the benefits of public transport outweigh the drawbacks.
ExampleFor many cities, the long-term savings outweigh the initial construction costs.
Usage Scenarios
Task 2 judgment
Use outweigh when your position is that one side of an argument carries more force than the other.
ExampleIn my view, the benefits of public transport outweigh the drawbacks.
Cost-benefit evaluation
Use it when judging long-term benefits, costs, risks, or disadvantages, then explain the reason for the balance.
ExampleFor many cities, the long-term savings outweigh the initial construction costs.
Usage Guide
Use outweigh when your essay judges that benefits, advantages, costs, risks, or drawbacks are stronger than the opposing side.
High-value Task 2 chunks include benefits outweigh drawbacks, advantages outweigh disadvantages, and costs outweigh benefits when the essay makes a balanced judgment.
Do not use outweigh without explaining the reason for the judgment. The next sentence should show why one side carries more weight.
Word Forms & Word Building
Outweigh is a verb built from out- plus weigh. The idea is that one side has more weight, importance, or force than the other.
In IELTS Task 2, it often appears with benefits, advantages, drawbacks, disadvantages, costs, and risks.
The grammar is direct: benefits outweigh drawbacks, advantages outweigh disadvantages, or costs outweigh benefits.
Meaning Boundaries
Outweigh vs compare
Compare means look at similarities or differences. Outweigh means one side is judged stronger, more important, or more convincing.
Outweigh vs exceed
Exceed is often numerical. Outweigh is argumentative and evaluates importance, benefits, drawbacks, costs, or risks.
Best IELTS context
Use outweigh in Task 2 opinion essays when judging whether advantages, disadvantages, costs, benefits, or risks are stronger.
Memory Tricks
Store outweigh as one side is stronger. Decide exactly which side has more importance before using the verb.
Practice the frame the benefits outweigh the drawbacks, then add why that judgment is reasonable.
Use it near your opinion or conclusion, not as a loose synonym for compare.
Common Traps
Do not use outweigh unless you are clearly judging two sides against each other.
Do not write outweigh than. The verb takes a direct object: benefits outweigh drawbacks.
Make the basis of judgment clear: cost, social impact, health, convenience, fairness, or long-term benefit.