Load, burden, freight, cargo, lading are comparable when they mean something which is carried, conveyed, or transported from one place to another.
Load is the most comprehensive of these terms, being applicable to whatever is carried (as by a man, animal, vehicle, ship, running water, or conducting wire). Load is also applicable to the quantity or amount carried (as by a wagon, a truck, or a freight car).
Burden may take the place of load, but in both primary and extended use it ordinarily takes on some of the notions of the cognate verb (see BURDEN ) and suggests a load that weighs one down (as from heaviness, unpleasantness, or unwieldiness).
Freight applies to goods or merchandise in transit, especially long-distance transit (as by ship, railway train, or motor truck).
Cargo applies specifically to freight carried by a ship or aircraft.
Lading is chiefly a poetic or commercial synonym for freight or cargo. Are Comparable When They Denote The Means, Especially The Amount Of Money Or Goods, Required To Keep One Supplied With The Necessities Of Life (As Food, Housing, And Clothing) And Sometimes Also The Nonessentials That With The Necessities Supply The Needs Of A Full Life.