as in clumsy
difficult to use or operate especially because of size, weight, or design
even my five-year-old laptop seems clunky next to some of the really slim new models
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of clunky
Unlike the clunky, awkward chatbots of previous iterations, today’s voice AI agents can have real conversations.
—
Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025
Free online tools are clunky, and Adobe Acrobat locks you into endless monthly payments.
—PC Magazine, 5 Oct. 2025
Putting things in order Throughout the 1960s, Piaget observed that young children rely on clunky trial-and-error methods rather than systematic strategies when attempting to order objects according to some continuous quantitative dimension, like length.
—Celeste Kidd, The Conversation, 3 Oct. 2025
Sometimes hoses are particularly heavy, tough to unravel, and overall clunky to use, but there are options that work well and make watering easy, including the Flexzilla Garden Hose, an Amazon best-seller and shopper-favorite.
—Brittany Vanderbill, Better Homes & Gardens, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clunky
Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025
Free online tools are clunky, and Adobe Acrobat locks you into endless monthly payments.
—PC Magazine, 5 Oct. 2025
Putting things in order Throughout the 1960s, Piaget observed that young children rely on clunky trial-and-error methods rather than systematic strategies when attempting to order objects according to some continuous quantitative dimension, like length.
—Celeste Kidd, The Conversation, 3 Oct. 2025
Sometimes hoses are particularly heavy, tough to unravel, and overall clunky to use, but there are options that work well and make watering easy, including the Flexzilla Garden Hose, an Amazon best-seller and shopper-favorite.
—Brittany Vanderbill, Better Homes & Gardens, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clunky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clunky
Adjective
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Actually, Alma does suffer from ulcers, which cause her extraordinary stomach pain and vomiting at inconvenient moments, and cause viewers to wonder not if but when such clumsy symbolic traits will be trotted out in the future.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
9 Oct. 2025
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There had to be an element of her that was sort of clumsy.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Pickens caught a pass around the 26-yard line and blazed past cornerback Mike Jackson on an awkward angle for the score.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
12 Oct. 2025
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Teammate Ji’Ayir Brown rolled up on the back of Warner’s ankle while trying to make a tackle on Rachaad White, and Warner’s ankle bent at an awkward angle.—
The Athletic NFL Staff,
New York Times,
12 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Westonetek Add-a-bag Luggage Strap, 2-pack Flight attendants also love this luggage strap for their own cumbersome travel loads.—
Aly Walansky,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Oct. 2025
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Big, cumbersome, and greasy, baking sheets can be a pain to clean and dry off.—
Daley Quinn,
Southern Living,
21 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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That aspect of the dispute will be closely watched across the industry, which has embraced streaming but in so doing foisted an unwieldy user experience on viewers of sports.—
Dade Hayes,
Deadline,
25 Sep. 2025
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Leonora possesses an unwieldy, arch brand of femininity.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Clunky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clunky. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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