Synonyms for cumbersome
- adjective
Most common
All synonyms
Adjective
1. Unwieldy
unwieldy, awkward, burdensome, clumsy, difficult, unmanageable, inconvenient, heavy, ponderous, massive, inept, lumbering, inapt, ill-chosen, bulky, unhandy, lumpish dated
Other
cumbrous formal
Definitions
- adj. 1
Burdensome or hindering, as if a weight or drag; vexatious.
Related words
- Word family
- cumbersomeness
Example sentences
- awkward At first the trainees were awkward in his company.
- clumsy Her movements were awkward and her gesture clumsy.
- burdensome I appreciated her kindness, while I feel it burdensome.
- unwieldy The vacuum cleaner is a bit unwieldy.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| cumbersome | steady | |
| awkward | rising | |
| clumsy | rising | |
| burdensome | steady | |
| unwieldy | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 5 letters
- heavy2, bulky2, inept2, inapt
- 6 letters
- clumsy2
- 7 letters
- massive2, awkward2, unhandy, lumpish
- 8 letters
- unwieldy3, cumbrous
- 9 letters
- difficult3, lumbering3, ponderous3
- 10 letters
- burdensome3
- 12 letters
- inconvenient4, unmanageable5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (heavy2 = 2 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- encombrant