1
as in boring
causing weariness, restlessness, or lack of interest
fell asleep during the ponderous speech
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in massive
having great weight
those ponderous pachyderms more commonly known as elephants
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3
as in clumsy
difficult to use or operate especially because of size, weight, or design
lugged a ponderous movie camera all over China
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ponderous
Despite the political specificity of the family history unearthed here, the script presumes a level of profundity that’s just not there in the movie’s ponderous silences and woozy montages.
—
David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 28 Sep. 2025
The sculpture, unveiled by the artist Eric Fischl in 2000 and titled Soul in Flight, is worth pausing to look at, for its instructive power and its indictment of the ponderous slabs of metallurgical debris that litter other stadiums and arenas.
—Sally Jenkins, The Atlantic, 30 Aug. 2025
Much of the show is given to ponderous historical segues.
—Ruby Tandoh, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
There’s no long-winded exposition, no ponderous articulation of the themes, and no punches pulled.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ponderous
David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 28 Sep. 2025
The sculpture, unveiled by the artist Eric Fischl in 2000 and titled Soul in Flight, is worth pausing to look at, for its instructive power and its indictment of the ponderous slabs of metallurgical debris that litter other stadiums and arenas.
—Sally Jenkins, The Atlantic, 30 Aug. 2025
Much of the show is given to ponderous historical segues.
—Ruby Tandoh, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
There’s no long-winded exposition, no ponderous articulation of the themes, and no punches pulled.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ponderous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ponderous
Adjective
-
The boring lunch ends boringly, with the women sipping their champagne in silence, tucking into their salads, and ignoring the commemorative glasses that no one wanted.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
13 Feb. 2026
-
This sounds like a boring event but the boys turn the act of breaking up ice or sleet sheets from the sidewalk into a hockey-like competition.—
Caleb Harris,
Austin American Statesman,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Privacy concerns about using massive DNA databases in law enforcement investigations continue – especially for services that exist mostly to satisfy people’s personal curiosity about their heritage.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
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Avalanches are rapid, massive slides of snow, ice, rock and soil that can be caused by storms, earthquakes or snowpack deterioration.—
Ramon Padilla,
USA Today,
19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The tech driving my first clumsy steps included a six-axis inertial measurement unit (IMU) and GPS sensors monitoring each ski’s position and the weight and angle of my heel.—
Kendall Hunter,
Outside,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Who wants to sit through a fictitious novelist’s clumsy drafts?—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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That builds on similar trends throughout 2025, when the industry buoyed an otherwise slow labor market, as the nation’s hospitals, clinics and nursing homes kept hiring even as many employers pulled back.—
Abha Bhattarai,
Washington Post,
14 Feb. 2026
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Any type of realism was [limited to] very short clips, everything was very slow, bad textures, no skin textures, lacking detail.—
Arjun Kharpal,
CNBC,
14 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Glenn, who became the first woman since Kwan to win three consecutive national titles, will come in as the heavy favorite but Liu, the only member of the team with Olympic experience, and the 18-year-old Levito, a silver medalist at worlds, could deliver just as easily.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
16 Feb. 2026
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Stirred to life by Adam Evans, the chef at award-winning Birmingham restaurant Automatic Seafood and Oysters, this sophisticated dip is smoky and herb-heavy.—
Lisa Cericola,
Southern Living,
15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Reaching backward or twisting around other people to grab a bag is awkward and strains muscles.—
Stacey Leasca,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Feb. 2026
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These things are often awkward at the best of times and with the best of families, but this oddball mess of a household might just be the actual worst.—
David Opie,
IndieWire,
15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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It's been a cold, tiring week, but the light at the end of the tunnel that is a Saturday at Ikea picking out lamp shades is finally within sight.—
Joe Mutascio,
IndyStar,
6 Feb. 2026
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But studies have also shown that consuming caffeine before a mentally tiring task reduces the feeling of cognitive fatigue.—
Katharine Gammon,
Time,
6 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The process is cumbersome, deliberate, sluggish … and long overdue.—
Bill Swank,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Feb. 2026
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One approach is to reform outdated and cumbersome permitting processes so clean energy projects, such as for solar and wind power — along with more transmission lines — can be added to our grid more quickly.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ponderous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ponderous. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
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