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clumsily

adverb

Definition of clumsilynext
as in ineptly

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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 clumsily All the while, the question of whether they’re related by blood lurks in the background, kicked slowly down the road until the finale clumsily throws it into focus. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 23 Sep. 2026 What detracts from the film is the clumsily emphatic foreshadowing of a dramatic plot turn, which is pretty much spelled out by an alarm company technician who sells Miguel on the wisdom of upgrading to a next-level home security system. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026 But the law does not tolerate bribery or campaign finance violations no matter how cleverly or clumsily disguised. — Darryll K. Jones, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Sep. 2026 The donkey has a gentle demeanor, allowing 7-year-old Cole to hug her clumsily around her face. — Emily L. Mahoney, Miami Herald, 4 Sep. 2026 That’s how grifters such as Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White, two former NBA players insinuating themselves clumsily into the transgender sports debate, create value. — Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026 In June, Luna hopped clumsily from one branch to another, bumping Sandy off her perch and sending her to a branch below. — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2026 With his vision obscured by his makeshift headgear, Momota could be seen clumsily making his way around as visitors watched nearby. — Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 17 Aug. 2026 This is yet another movie that aims rather clumsily for shock value by dwelling on consumption and meat, like many a grisly eating-disorder horror opus of late. — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 30 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clumsily
  1. ineptly
  2. awkwardly
  3. gracelessly
  4. laboriously
  5. arduously
Adverb
  • The collapse of the Constitution’s balance of powers between three branches of government got us into an unneeded war conducted ineptly.
    — Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 15 Mar. 2026
  • Dancing the Poznan really ineptly, mind you, but dancing nonetheless.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Sep. 2025
Definition of ineptly
Adverb
  • Venus in your daily-life zone connects awkwardly with Uranus in your sign, increasing your appetite for novelty, movement, or a different way of doing things.
    — Tarot.com, Sun Sentinel, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Hofmann gives this awkwardly sized puppet life, energy and voice, controlling its body while castmates flit in and out as the manipulators of its wings.
    — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of awkwardly
Adverb
  • This kind of beauty has nothing to do with perfection, which is distributed so arbitrarily and approximated so gracelessly.
    — Jia Tolentino, New Yorker, 11 July 2026
Definition of gracelessly
Adverb
  • For starters, pulling it off requires running a computer script alongside the game, laboriously entering each round of color feedback into a separate application.
    — Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 17 June 2026
  • Each was a career politician who spent decades laboriously climbing the government rungs before being elected governor.
    — Mark Barabak, Mercury News, 13 May 2026
Definition of laboriously
Adverb
  • Rudi Schreiner, a cofounder of the company, originally hoped to include El Banco but had to cut the town from the itinerary due to the Magdalena's arduously bendy approach to the riverside village.
    — Charlie Hobbs, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Sep. 2026
  • After an arduously long winter, these narrow, modestly sized shops have been—with a suddenness and intensity that only TikTok and Instagram can foment—thronged.
    — David Kamp, New Yorker, 29 June 2026
Definition of arduously

Browse Nearby Words

clumpy
clumsily
clumsiness
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Cite this Entry

“Clumsily.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clumsily. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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