A comparison may be useful.
Loaded dice are dice which are loaded heavier on one side, to make it more likely that side will face down. If you want to roll a 6 every time, you would load the 1 side of the die.
In the same way, a loaded question will influence the person answering towards a certain answer. Many examples in other comments
It’s a trick question. A question based on a presumption of guilt or falsehood.
Simple example: During a trial before anyone has been found guilty, someone may ask you, “Do you think he’s guilty?”
Simple question, ‘No’ means you do not think he is guilty.
Now, someone may ask you the loaded question, “Do you think they should convict this criminal?”
If you think he’s innocent, but simply answer ‘No’, you are still inadvertently admitting he is, in fact, a criminal.
It is a question that is asked not to get a straightforward answer but to instead push some point of view onto all the listeners.
A lawyer in a courtroom can ask – “do you do drugs?”, and the defendant can respond with a yes or no.
However, if the lawyers instead asks “tell me, do you enjoy doing drugs?” there is no way to answer without avoiding the question entirely, and now the thought of you doing drugs is in the jury’s head.
In addition to the other answers, I’ve also heard it the phrase in reference to a question with a lot of heavy background necessary to understand it. “Why does homelessness exist,” for example, or “what happens after we die”. Answering it fully would require a 5-page essay with citations, so it’s not easily answered in a quick dinner conversation.
To clarify, this is not necessarily the CORRECT way to use the phrase ‘loaded question’, but a lot of people say loaded question and mean this.
It’s a question by which the answer maybe given in a couple of different ways. One possible answer could hurt feelings or be misleading or result in a falsehood.
“Do these jeans make my bum look huge?” The answer could be a simple no, or do you want my opinion about the jeans and fit or your bum in those jean or just your bum? Do you need validation about your style choices or reassurance that I still find you attractive…?
See…? Loaded
A loaded question is one that presumes a particular answer by its phrasing. A famous example is “Do you still beat your wife?” Whether the person answers yes or no, you can accuse them at least of beating their wife in the past even if they never did.
This is also very popular in political discussions. “Why is Biden allowing gas prices to go so high?” The answer is not as simple as giving a reason because it could have little or nothing to do with him.
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