1
as in awkward
lacking or showing a lack of nimbleness in using one's hands
diamond cutting is no job for a clumsy person
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in uncoordinated
having or showing an inability to move in a graceful manner
a clumsy bow clumsy on the dance floor
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3
as in uncomfortable
lacking social grace and assurance
felt clumsy in the unfamiliar uniform
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4
as in inexperienced
showing or marked by a lack of skill and tact (as in dealing with a situation)
a clumsy joke
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5
as in cumbersome
difficult to use or operate especially because of size, weight, or design
a clumsy contraption, but it got the job done
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6
as in rude
hastily or roughly constructed
a clumsy mock-up of the real thing
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of clumsy
An exceptionally clumsy device.
—
Mark Phelan, Freep.com, 23 Oct. 2025
In the first clip, clumsy lightning cascades out of a cloud and moves across the water and into my feed.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 20 Oct. 2025
Arturs Silovs looked a bit clumsy in the first period and his rebound control was less than stellar.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
There had to be an element of her that was sort of clumsy.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clumsy
Mark Phelan, Freep.com, 23 Oct. 2025
In the first clip, clumsy lightning cascades out of a cloud and moves across the water and into my feed.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 20 Oct. 2025
Arturs Silovs looked a bit clumsy in the first period and his rebound control was less than stellar.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
There had to be an element of her that was sort of clumsy.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clumsy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clumsy
Adjective
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The rise of digital payment systems has made tipping both easier and more awkward, especially when prompts appear at counters, kiosks and drive-thru windows.—
Peter Burke,
FOXNews.com,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Use this a couple of times a week for smoother, brighter skin (without getting sunburnt and sand in awkward places).—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
9 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Unfortunately, the Pentagon’s decision appears uncoordinated and directly at odds with the President’s strategy.—
Anne Flaherty,
ABC News,
29 Oct. 2025
-
This can lead to problems such as weakness, muscle tension, and uncoordinated voiding that can cause issues like incontinence, urgency, and frequent urinary tract infections.—
Maggie O'Neill,
Verywell Health,
3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
My seat is hard and uncomfortable.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Whoever dispatched that ambulance might be one of many employees at the Department of Emergency Communications who have felt uncomfortable, yelled at and trapped between their calling to help people and what several current and former dispatchers have called a hostile work environment.—
Kirsten Fiscus,
Nashville Tennessean,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Director Michael Arden, meanwhile, is up to his elbows just moving the cumbersome Legos of Dane Laffrey’s set around.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
10 Nov. 2025
-
The government has relaxed its once-cumbersome visa process and invested heavily in airport and road upgrades to make the country’s immense, underexplored landscapes more accessible.—
Mark Ellwood,
AFAR Media,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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People who are rude or unaware with receptionists can poison your culture, create unnecessary hierarchies, and drive your best people to leave.—
Jessica Neal,
CNBC,
5 Nov. 2025
-
In a post on the AITA subreddit, the original poster (OP) explained that her sister, 34, who's always rude to her, has a 6-year-old son.—
Kayla Grant,
PEOPLE,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The movie begins in 1989, when Martin was just out of her teens and fighting in Toughwoman contests, and spans 22 years, providing all sorts of opportunities for ungainly period hairstyles, from a ragged pageboy to a curly mullet to a frizzy shag.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
7 Nov. 2025
-
All loads easier than wrangling an ungainly bird half the table doesn’t really much care for anyway (what?—
Shilpa Uskokovic,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Rather than offering peace of mind from pest invasion, the chemical control process often leaves families feeling uneasy about what has been introduced so indiscriminately into their environment.—
Malana VanTyler,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
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Cuomo led early polls, buoyed by name recognition and a coalition of moderate Democrats uneasy with the party’s leftward drift.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Despite the game’s unwieldy duration, 8 million people were still tuned in to Fox when Freeman’s bat finally called it a night.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
30 Oct. 2025
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A lot of what is unwieldy about Down Cemetery Road stems from the source novel, which predates the Slough House series and showcases a writer with an exceptional gift for dialogue and characterization but a more nascent sense of rudimentary storytelling.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Clumsy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clumsy. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
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