How to Use paperweight in a Sentence

paperweight

noun
  • Place the paperweight or stones on the very edges of the plate to hold it in place.
    Megan Arnett, Scientific American, 15 Mar. 2018
  • To her left, a stack of her recent pieces was held in place with a paperweight in the shape of a bird.
    Anna Codrea-Rado, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2018
  • Was it stashed at the back of some cupboard or put to use as a paperweight?
    Hedley Twidle, Harper's Magazine, 23 Nov. 2021
  • And now that they're broken up, maybe A.Rod can use it as a paperweight!
    Elizabeth Loga, Glamour, 2 Aug. 2021
  • A. In the dining room there is a collection of old plates on the wall and paperweights on the windowsills.
    Joanne Kempinger Demski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 6 July 2017
  • The warrant for Davis's arrest sports a snapshot of the contraband--- a paperweight containing a fleck of the moon.
    Veronique Greenwood, Discover Magazine, 24 Oct. 2011
  • Just within reach, on the table, is a glass paperweight: Paula picks it up and brings it down hard on the lady’s head.
    Alex Mar, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2023
  • And not long ago, that big, immovable paperweight was ready to lift off.
    Steve Hartman, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2023
  • Barbara, her daughter who was always like a sister and a best friend to me, gave this glass, clear paperweight heart, and the heart was gold.
    Hannah Chubb, PEOPLE.com, 6 Sep. 2019
  • Indeed, Hermès’s paperweights are known to run up a tab.
    Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 3 Jan. 2024
  • It can be used as a decoration or a paperweight and comes with a sweet message.
    Cailey Lindberg, goodhousekeeping.com, 10 June 2023
  • But Beauvoir is a mere paperweight compared to the 35-story concrete obelisk (one of the nation's largest) in a state park in Fairview, Ky., to mark Davis's birthplace. .
    Rick Hampson, USA TODAY, 17 Aug. 2017
  • It was gifted by one of the school’s custodians and Linney used it as a paperweight.
    Jim Seimas, The Mercury News, 27 Apr. 2017
  • It had been set in Perspex to act as a paperweight, with a note in her charming schoolgirl writing—all that remained of the historic day.
    Harper's Bazaar Staff, Harper's BAZAAR, 17 May 2018
  • So a perfectly good iPad may just end up being a paperweight.
    Jim Rossman, Dallas News, 15 July 2021
  • Joann Davis decided to sell the paperweights in 2011 after falling on hard times.
    Kristine Phillips, ajc, 12 June 2018
  • All of the items, except the paperweight, are made by Kevin Clarke, an artist in Petaluma, Calif., who landed the gig on the strength of his work with another metaphorical nuisance: bugs.
    Danny Freedman, Washington Post, 16 Jan. 2023
  • The black hole paperweight is designed with dense black and layers of dichroic glass to create a swirling vortex on an endless backdrop.
    Shannon Greeley, Discover Magazine, 30 Oct. 2020
  • A few weeks later, a rose from her bouquet arrived, set in Perspex to act as a paperweight, with a note of thanks in her schoolgirl writing.
    Caroline Hallemann, Town & Country, 16 May 2018
  • The car is nothing more than a large paperweight until a human driver hops into the driver’s seat.
    Lance Eliot, Forbes, 3 June 2021
  • Throughout his brief presidency, John F. Kennedy kept a paperweight on his desk made out of half a coconut shell preserved in a piece of wood.
    Kat Eschner, Smithsonian, 2 Aug. 2017
  • Throughout his brief presidency, John F. Kennedy kept a paperweight on his desk made out of half a coconut shell preserved in a piece of wood.
    Kat Eschner, Smithsonian, 2 Aug. 2017
  • Known for his love of decoupage (his paperweights are a go-to for designers), Derian owns four charming home goods shops in New York City.
    Monique Valeris, ELLE Decor, 13 Feb. 2019
  • Vanessa Hogge's divine porcelain flowers are meant for the wall, but are equally good as paperweights.
    Sally Singer, Vogue, 29 Nov. 2018
  • Last year’s featured item, the paperweight, is another example of a once-ubiquitous thing that has been phased out over the years largely due to lack of need.
    refinery29.com, 11 July 2018
  • The proverbial dead battery is apt to make the self-driving car into a multi-ton paperweight, which of course could be said of any conventional car too.
    Lance Eliot, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2021
  • Craft this pretty paperweight to secure stray documents on your desk or counter.
    Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Dec. 2023
  • Ivan Karamazov fools around and composes poems while Smerdyakov takes a paperweight and slams Fyodor Pavlovich on the head—once, twice, thrice.
    Maxim Osipov, The Atlantic, 16 May 2022
  • But not everyone can use paper clips, chewing gum, or paperweights to pick locks—or hang pictures.
    Popular Science, 15 Mar. 2020
  • Marianne paperweights, handmade and mouth-blown in Denmark.
    Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 21 Mar. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'paperweight.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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