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to scale

to scale

61 3.5
To change the size or amount of something to fit a standard
  • verb
  • /skeɪl/
translation icon : escalar
  • Increasingly, federal and nonprofit grantmakers are seeking to scale up programs that have demonstrated evidence of effectiveness.
  • scale up production
  • scale the model
  • scale down a system

You have to shrink all these elements down so that you can scale the device up.

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Examples

  • The designer plans to scale the model to accurately represent the final product's dimensions.

  • Barobo was awarded an NSF Small Business Innovation Research Phase I grant to scale up iMobot for commercial deployment.

    Academic text (2011)
  • So just try and scale back if required.

  • But we do want to scale in Y, so we'll scale by two.

  • And it does scale in the right way.

  • Had to scale it down.

  • We had real budget challenges, so we had to figure out how to scale it back.

  • I have no desire to scale up or get bigger.

  • So Obama decided to scale back the guest list for his party.

  • We also have a deeper understanding of what it takes to scale programs and how to support organizations to grow.

    Academic text (2017)

Synonyms

to size
vsto scale
65 3.5

To change something so it fits better

involves adjusting proportions to follow a specific ratio or standard
to resize
vsto scale
  • Specialized
11 3.2

To change the size of something, for example a picture or window, to make it fit better

focuses on changing proportions specifically to match a set ratio
to proportion
vsto scale
5 5.1

To arrange parts so they look balanced

aims to set sizes to meet an external numeric standard or ratio
to adjust the size
vsto scale
1 3.3

Make something larger or smaller so it fits

emphasizes matching the change to a standard rather than just changing dimensions
to rescale
vsto scale
1 5.0

Change the size or units of something so it fits new measurements

is changing size according to a particular standard or ratio

Idioms

Much higher than normal

1 8.5

To make a process unfair to give someone an advantage

Jupiterian in scale
  • Literature
9.9

Very large and grand like a giant planet

To give one side an advantage in a situation

Make a situation end the way you want

Phrasal Verbs

9 3.9

Increase the size or amount of something so it still works well

To make something smaller in size or amount

Compounds

65 3.8

Very large and affecting many people or places

49 4.1

Complete and using all available resources

30 2.7

Used for projects or models that are not large

12 3.9

A way of showing how long events take and when they happen

economy of scale
  • Specialized
11 4.3

Lower cost for each item when a company makes many of them

Richter scale
  • Archaic
10 5.3

A scale that measures how strong an earthquake is from the waves recorded by machines

A system where fees or prices change depending on a person's income

2 1.1

A small flat piece on a fish's body that protects its skin

2 3.9

A schedule that shows how much people are paid for different jobs or experience levels

large-scale
  • Specialized
1 3.7

Larger than usual to show more detail in maps or models

major scale
  • Specialized
1 3.7

A set of seven notes with whole steps except half steps between the third and fourth and seventh and eighth

chromatic scale
  • Specialized
1 7.4

A scale of twelve notes that move by half steps within one octave

musical scale
  • Specialized
1 3.2

A set of notes ordered from low to high that form a basic pattern for melodies

beam scale
  • Specialized
1 5.2

A balance with a long bar that turns and uses a sliding weight to measure how heavy something is

diatonic scale
  • Specialized
1 6.0

A pattern of seven notes that makes the familiar major and minor sounds

logarithmic scale
  • Specialized
1 7.5

A way of showing numbers where each step is ten times bigger

minor scale
  • Specialized
1 4.6

A musical scale that sounds sad because some notes are lower than in a major scale

pentatonic scale
  • Specialized
1 7.0

A musical scale with five notes in each octave

1 7.3

A small insect that sucks plant sap and has a hard waxy covering

temperature scale
  • Specialized
1 3.0

A system for measuring how hot something is using units like Celsius and Fahrenheit

Beaufort scale
  • Specialized
7.0

A scale that measures wind strength from calm to hurricane

Binet-Simon Scale
  • Specialized
8.7

A test that measures how smart a person is

blues scale
  • Specialized
5.0

A group of notes musicians use to make the typical jazz and blues sound

Brix scale
  • Specialized
8.9

A scale for measuring how much sugar is in a liquid like juice or wine

brown soft scale
  • Specialized
8.5

A small brown insect that lives on plants, drinks their juice and weakens them

A sequence of notes C D E F G A B with no sharps or flats

A temperature scale where 0 degrees is water's freezing and 100 degrees its boiling

3.3

A way to measure temperature where water freezes at 0 degrees and boils at 100 degrees

Douglas scale
  • Specialized
8.6

A scale that measures how high sea waves are, from 0 calm to 9 very large

Douglas sea scale
  • Specialized
8.9

A scale of numbers that shows wave height at sea from 0 calm to 9 very high

absolute scale
  • Specialized
6.7

A temperature scale that starts at absolute zero, with zero as the lowest possible temperature

armored scale
  • Specialized
9.6

A small insect with a hard wax covering that sticks to leaves and stems

extended time scale
  • Specialized
7.6

A way of showing time in a simulation so events take longer than in real life

A scale for measuring temperature where water freezes at 32 degrees and boils at 212 degrees

fast time scale
  • Specialized
7.7

A way of running a simulation where time moves faster than real life

A small portable balance with a bar that turns on a point to weigh things

major diatonic scale
  • Specialized
7.2

A common eight-note pattern in Western music with small steps between third and fourth and seventh and eighth

Mercalli scale
  • Specialized
8.1

A scale that measures how strong an earthquake feels and how much damage it causes

minor diatonic scale
  • Specialized
8.5

A set of notes used in Western music that makes a piece sound sad

Mohs scale
  • Specialized
6.0

A scale that compares how easily minerals scratch each other, from soft talc to hard diamond

6.3

A scale that shows how much energy an earthquake releases

gapped scale
  • Specialized
9.9

A musical scale with fewer than seven notes that leaves out some notes from the usual scale

Garn scale
  • Specialized
9.9

A tool to measure color shades used in science and art

A scale that shows how high sea waves and long smooth waves are

Kelvin scale
  • Specialized
5.5

A temperature scale that starts at absolute zero and uses the same size degree as Celsius

octatonic scale
  • Specialized
9.9

A musical scale of eight notes that uses whole and half steps one after the other

Rankine scale
  • Specialized
9.2

A temperature scale that starts at absolute zero and uses degrees the same size as Fahrenheit

Réaumur scale
  • Archaic
9.9

A temperature scale where water freezes at 0 degrees and boils at 80 degrees

paraffin scale
  • Specialized
9.9

A partly refined wax made from crude oil used in industry

pH scale
  • Specialized
3.6

A number from 0 to 14 that shows how acidic or basic a liquid is, with 7 neutral

San Jose scale
  • Specialized
9.3

A small insect from East Asia that damages fruit trees

scale factor
  • Specialized
5.1

A number that makes an object bigger or smaller by the same amount

9.9

A small green plant with scaly, leather-like leaves that grows in rocky places

scale leaf
  • Specialized
9.2

A small leaf that covers and protects a bud on plants like pine trees

scale wax
  • Specialized
9.7

Partly refined paraffin wax made when oil is processed and used in industry

scale moss
  • Specialized
9.9

A small plant with tiny flat leaves that often grows on other plants

scale of C major
  • Specialized
3.7

A set of notes from C to B with no sharps or flats

scale of measurement
  • Specialized
5.4

A system that gives numbers or levels to show how much of something there is

A number that shows how something compares to other things

scale-up
  • Jargon
4.0

A company that has grown quickly and now expands staff and sales

time-scale factor
  • Specialized
7.1

A number that shows how fast a model runs compared to real life

slow time scale
  • Specialized
7.9

A way used in models to stretch time so events look slower than real life

soft scale
  • Specialized
8.9

A small insect with a soft, waxy covering that lives on plant stems and leaves

spring scale
  • Specialized
4.3

A small tool that measures weight or force by how much a metal coil stretches

vernier scale
  • Specialized
7.9

A small extra ruler that slides along a larger ruler to measure very small lengths

wind scale
  • Specialized
4.6

A number scale from zero to twelve used worldwide to show how strong the wind is

How Big

to enlarge
70 3.0
to scale up
9 3.9
to scale
61 3.5

Surface Forms

scale infinitive
scaled past
scaled past participle
scaling present participle
scales third person singular

Etymology

Scale (to adjust size or proportion) comes from the idea of a scale as a system of marks or steps (like on a map or ruler), so to scale something is to change its size or proportion to fit those steps.