ADJ
- great, heavy, onerous
- crippling, intolerable
- administrative, economic, financial, tax
VERB + BURDEN
- bear, carry
- The manager carries the greatest burden of responsibility
- assume, shoulder, take on
- She had to shoulder the burden of childcare
- impose, place
- His illness placed an intolerable burden on his family
- increase
- ease, lighten, reduce, relieve
- lift, remove
- The administrative burden must be lifted from local government
- shift
- plans to shift the burden of taxation onto larger companies
- share
- I need to share my burden with someone
BURDEN + VERB
- fall on sb/sth
- The economic burden falls mainly on businesses
PREP
- ~ for
- a burden for the whole family
- ~ of
- the burden of high taxation
- ~ on/ upon
- easing the financial burden on families
- ~ to
- She felt she was a burden to her parents
PHRASES
- the burden of proof (law) (= the responsibility of proving that sth is true)
- The burden of proof falls on the prosecution: the accused is presumed innocent until proved guilty
- have a burden on your shoulders
- He has the burden of a large family on his shoulders
- lift a burden from sb's shoulders
VERB + BURDEN
- carry
- The women carried their burdens on their backs
- pick up
- lay down, put down
PHRASES
- a beast of burden (= an animal used to do heavy work such as pulling or carrying things)