as in clumsy
having or showing an inability to move in a graceful manner
the stiff, gawky gait of a newborn colt
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of gawky
Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 14 Apr. 2025
Take it from a film critic: Even gawky beta nerds get smothered by their own internalized masculinity.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 10 Apr. 2025
Brittany Murphy, who co-starred as gawky new kid Tai, sadly passed away in 2009.
—Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 17 Apr. 2025
A far cry from the gawky and boyish Norman Bates, B.Z. is a floppy-haired, closeted Hollywood player slowly dissolving in his own nihilism.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gawky
Noun
Crumb’s gawky, eccentric persona was first revealed to the wider public in a 1994 documentary made by his friend Terry Zwigoff, which portrays the cartoonist with all of his incongruities.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 14 Apr. 2025
Take it from a film critic: Even gawky beta nerds get smothered by their own internalized masculinity.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 10 Apr. 2025
Brittany Murphy, who co-starred as gawky new kid Tai, sadly passed away in 2009.
—Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 17 Apr. 2025
A far cry from the gawky and boyish Norman Bates, B.Z. is a floppy-haired, closeted Hollywood player slowly dissolving in his own nihilism.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gawky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gawky
Adjective
-
Herbert includes a range of moments, from earnest attempts to talk about the enslaved people that maintained all these palatial homes to clumsier ones in which they are referred to as workers, insinuating that their labor was paid for instead of forced.—
Lovia Gyarkye,
HollywoodReporter,
20 June 2025
-
The aftermath of Virginia’s clumsy tumble into a rose bed where her exposed cleavage is profusely pricked by thorns lasts for all of one scene.—
Courtney Howard,
Variety,
16 June 2025
Noun
-
There’s at least one major shoe that could drop — why devote an entire episode to the Gemstone origin story if that gold Bible isn’t going to pay off somehow? — but The Righteous Gemstones loves these grotesque, dysfunctional louts.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
28 Apr. 2025
-
And when someone does cross the line, like the louts who doused cops in Harlem and Brownsville with water in 2019, most officers have shown remarkable restraint.—
Leonard Greene,
New York Daily News,
4 Feb. 2024
Adjective
-
The next mayor, like so many of his predecessors, will have to engage in awkward negotiations with politicians in Albany.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
30 June 2025
-
Barely a week goes by without some fresh young talent arriving in West London to pose for the media with a Blue jersey and an awkward grin.—
Zak Garner-Purkis,
Forbes.com,
30 June 2025
Noun
-
Buck is a loquacious, glad-handing oaf who has a boring way with a witty story, and is marked for death.—
Fred Schruers,
IndieWire,
27 Feb. 2025
-
Hackman’s aggravation early on that directors didn’t seek out and exploit his comic and even improv talents was handled unforgettably in his portrayal of Superman villain Lex Luthor, a flamboyant oaf of Trumpian proportions.—
Fred Schruers,
IndieWire,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The cornerstones of maps’ data pools are satellite images and a tireless fleet of Street View cars that roam with ungainly camera hats, constantly refreshing neighborhood-level detail.—
Sonya Bennett-Brandt,
AFAR Media,
25 June 2025
-
The resulting Cheetah was, frankly, an ungainly machine, more like an oversized four-wheel ATV than a Ford Bronco or Mercedes G-Wagen.—
Will Sabel Courtney,
Robb Report,
22 May 2025
Adjective
-
Inefficiencies, broken handoffs, communication gaps and uncoordinated processes stall activation and put undue burdens on businesses to figure out how to get a product up and running.—
Alfred Kahn,
Forbes.com,
23 June 2025
-
These videos often spotlight patchwork tattoos, a style that’s become increasingly trendy in the past five years and consists of clusters of uncoordinated flash tattoos rather than a cohesive sleeve.—
Alyssa Goldberg,
USA Today,
2 June 2025
Noun
-
Ashley Johnson, who played the adorable tyke Chrissy Seaver on two seasons of Growing Pains, stopped by the Pod Meets World recording studio to chat with Danielle Fishel, Rider Strong, and Will Friedle.—
Jordan Hoffman,
EW.com,
4 June 2025
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The adventure-seeking tyke immediately turned and took a step toward the outfield before his pops quickly gathered him for some photos.—
Chuck Schilken,
Los Angeles Times,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
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.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Dec. 2024
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The Esprit's shape, arguably more avant-garde despite its age, consistently pegs the gawk meter.—
John Phillips,
Car and Driver,
18 June 2020
Cite this Entry
“Gawky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gawky. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
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