clumsy

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈklʌmzi/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/ˈklʌmzi/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(klumzē)

Inflections of 'clumsy' (adj):
clumsier
adj comparative
clumsiest
adj superlative

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
clum•sy /ˈklʌmzi/USA pronunciation   adj., -si•er, -si•est. 
  1. awkward in movement or use;
    lacking skill:a clumsy dancer.
  2. awkwardly or poorly done:a clumsy apology.
  3. awkward or difficult to control or handle:The heavy motorcycle was clumsy on the road.
clum•si•ly, adv. 
clum•si•ness, n. [uncountable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
clum•sy  (klumzē),USA pronunciation adj., -si•er, -si•est. 
  1. awkward in movement or action;
    without skill or grace:He is very clumsy and is always breaking things.
  2. awkwardly done or made;
    unwieldy;
    ill-contrived:He made a clumsy, embarrassed apology.
  • 1590–1600; clums benumbed with cold (now obsolete) + -y1; akin to Middle English clumsen to be stiff with cold, dialect, dialectal Swedish klumsig benumbed, awkward, klums numbskull, Old Norse klumsa lockjaw. See clam2
clumsi•ly, adv. 
clumsi•ness, n. 
    • 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged ungraceful, ungainly, lumbering, lubberly.
    • 2.See corresponding entry in Unabridged unhandy, unskillful, maladroit, inexpert, bungling, bumbling, heavy-handed, inept.
    • 2.See corresponding entry in Unabridged adroit, skillful.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
clumsy / ˈklʌmzɪ/ ( -sier, -siest)
  1. lacking in skill or physical coordination
  2. awkwardly constructed or contrived
Etymology: 16th Century (in obsolete sense: benumbed with cold; hence, awkward): perhaps from C13 dialect clumse to benumb, probably from Scandinavian; compare Swedish dialect klumsig numbˈclumsilyˈclumsiness
'clumsy' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Collocations: am (always) so clumsy!, am usually a [little, bit] clumsy, try not to be so clumsy!, more...

Forum discussions with the word(s) "clumsy" in the title:


Look up "clumsy" at Merriam-Webster
Look up "clumsy" at dictionary.com
  • Go to Preferences page and choose from different actions for taps or mouse clicks.

In other languages: Spanish | French | Italian | Portuguese | Romanian | German | Dutch | Swedish | Russian | Polish | Czech | Greek | Turkish | Chinese | Japanese | Korean | Arabic

Advertisements
Advertisements
Report an inappropriate ad.
WordReference.com
WORD OF THE DAY
GET THE DAILY EMAIL!