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
Long, ponderous trains snake through at regular intervals.
—
Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2025
Too often novels packed with this many ideas sacrifice emotion in favor of mounting a ponderous argument; Norlin instead writes visceral episodes that speak for themselves.
—Joumana Khatib, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2025
The magic of blasting down a wall of water balanced on a few pounds of Styrofoam doesn’t typically translate to the rectangular page; too many efforts feel pompous, ponderous or preening.
—Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2025
Too often novels packed with this many ideas sacrifice emotion in favor of mounting a ponderous argument; Norlin instead writes visceral episodes that speak for themselves.
—Joumana Khatib, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ponderous
Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2025
Too often novels packed with this many ideas sacrifice emotion in favor of mounting a ponderous argument; Norlin instead writes visceral episodes that speak for themselves.
—Joumana Khatib, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2025
The magic of blasting down a wall of water balanced on a few pounds of Styrofoam doesn’t typically translate to the rectangular page; too many efforts feel pompous, ponderous or preening.
—Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2025
Too often novels packed with this many ideas sacrifice emotion in favor of mounting a ponderous argument; Norlin instead writes visceral episodes that speak for themselves.
—Joumana Khatib, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ponderous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ponderous
Adjective
-
This is worlds away from that boring deli chicken sandwich, while still being easy enough to whip up on the busiest of days.—
Kimberly Holland,
Southern Living,
28 June 2025
-
The contract’s scope of work includes the single bore tunnel, station entrances and exits, the excavation of underground stations and the procurement of a tunnel boring machine.—
Grace Hase,
Mercury News,
27 June 2025
Adjective
-
Energy Prices The war between Israel and Iran had evoked fears of a regional conflict that results in massive civilian casualties, and disrupts the flow of energy and other trade through the region.—
Sara Braun,
Fortune,
22 June 2025
-
That could also significantly help the U.S. military should President Trump decide to directly enter the conflict, using massive bunker-buster bombs in an attempt to stop Iran's nuclear capabilities.—
Kat Lonsdorf,
NPR,
21 June 2025
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
Adjective
-
Repeated waxing weakens follicles, making hair grow in finer and slower over time.—
Nia Bowers,
USA Today,
23 June 2025
-
The music is, for the most part, quiet and slow, often hovering at the edge of silence.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
23 June 2025
Adjective
-
The heavy rain has ended and while flooding is no longer expected to pose a threat, area creeks and streams may remain elevated.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
28 June 2025
-
Thousands of motorists were stranded for more than eight hours along a section of rural interstate highway in southern West Virginia early Friday after a mudslide caused by heavy rains blocked a storm drain the previous night, flooding and completely shutting down the northbound lanes.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 June 2025
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
Adjective
-
Seeing that expansion and contraction over and over for six episodes (let alone three seasons) can grow tiring, and Season 3 certainly suffers from a sense of exhaustion.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
27 June 2025
-
Now in his 80s trips to the islands are more challenging, and maintaining a boat that can make the journey is expensive and tiring.—
Kathleen Rellihan,
Outside Online,
8 June 2025
Adjective
-
In-call operations, such as managing state or editing messages, are more cumbersome with audio.—
Arkadiy Telegin,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
-
For sharp images, stability is key—but a traditional tripod is cumbersome inside the confines of a safari vehicle.—
Lauren Breedlove,
Travel + Leisure,
16 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ponderous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ponderous. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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