as in clumsy
having or showing an inability to move in a graceful manner
the stiff, gawky gait of a newborn colt
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of gawky
Maxie Younger,
Pitchfork,
27 Mar. 2026
The league’s very first pick, by the New York franchise, was Chloe Covell, a skinny, slightly gawky skateboarder from Australia’s Gold Coast.
—
David Bloom,
Forbes.com,
14 Mar. 2026
Homeroom placement was designated by test scores, and Smith rightly recalled that her homeroom class with Tupac was filled by twenty-eight Black students — and a gawky white kid named William Yates.
—
Jeff Pearlman,
Rolling Stone,
17 Oct. 2025
Crenshaw made fun of Davidson’s gawky stature and then called for respect for all veterans as well as first responders in the 9/11 attacks — one of whom was Davidson’s father.
—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gawky
Adjective
Played in full, Silent Way induces a pervasive nausea, reveling in gawky soundscapes that seem barely able to contain their outsized, clashing ideas.
—
Maxie Younger,
Pitchfork,
27 Mar. 2026
The league’s very first pick, by the New York franchise, was Chloe Covell, a skinny, slightly gawky skateboarder from Australia’s Gold Coast.
—
David Bloom,
Forbes.com,
14 Mar. 2026
Homeroom placement was designated by test scores, and Smith rightly recalled that her homeroom class with Tupac was filled by twenty-eight Black students — and a gawky white kid named William Yates.
—
Jeff Pearlman,
Rolling Stone,
17 Oct. 2025
Crenshaw made fun of Davidson’s gawky stature and then called for respect for all veterans as well as first responders in the 9/11 attacks — one of whom was Davidson’s father.
—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gawky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gawky
Adjective
-
This has, in many cases, led to some clumsy looking solutions at venues across North America.
-
An early furor over accepting valuable gifts, including designer spectacles and Taylor Swift concert tickets, was followed by a series of policy U-turns, especially clumsy attempts to cut welfare spending that stirred anger in Labour ranks.
Noun
-
The league’s most popular player has become its biggest lout.
-
There’s a maddening human truth tucked into the fact that everyone — from Lebedev’s forceful, hopeful young daughter Sasha (Maya Shoham) to the lout Borkin, whom Labbadia embodies irresistibly as a kind of Bronx-y hustler — is drawn to this man in free fall.
Adjective
-
Your 2nd House of Finances hits an awkward angle as the nurturing Moon quincunxes ambitious Mars in your 9th House of Travel and Learning.
-
But that doesn’t mean there still aren’t some awkward moments.
Noun
-
Star-studded, and then some, the upcoming show boasts giant of stage and screen John Lithgow as Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, Golden Globe winner Janet McTeer as stern but wise Professor Minerva McGonagall, and comedy stalwart Nick Frost as gentle oaf Rubeus Hagrid.
-
And then find a slippery road, or just drive like an oaf.
Adjective
-
Instead of an ungainly pile of pillows, modern buyers prefer to let the materials sing.
-
Seydoux tromps through the film with a masculine heaviness — a sense of dysphoria that translates to her character’s ungainly bearing.
Noun
-
At least Duncan’s daughter and fellow cadet, Teela (Eire Farrell), takes pity on the hopeless tyke.
-
That backstory might prove disturbing for younger tykes, as will a vicious battle between Sebastian and two menacing dogs, no doubt accounting for the film’s PG rating.
Adjective
-
In November, a number of odd bedfellows submitted several, uncoordinated letters to the BLM’s acting director, all urging caution about the downstream effects of the CRA ruling.
-
Much of this is vibrational motion, which is random and uncoordinated.
Noun
-
Carrie raves to Seema about her creative connection with Duncan, and during another writing session, Duncan helps Carrie with her faulty printer and gawks at her closet full of designer dresses and shoes.
-
Here, the blurring is visual: Sometimes Leonard floats into the past looking like Gere, who wears the character without a shred of self-protection as the lens gawks at his raw skin.
Cite this Entry
“Gawky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gawky. Accessed 30 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
