scalescalescalesscaledscalingnoun1the size or level of something: It was not until morning that the full scale of the damage could be seen.2a set of levels or numbers used for measuring something: Their work is assessed on a scale from 1 to 10.3scales (plural) (British) (Americanscale)a machine for showing how heavy people or things are: bathroom scales4how distances are shown on a map: This map has a scale of one centimetre to ten kilometres.5one of the flat hard things that cover the body of animals like fish and snakes