Cumbersome

//ˈkʌmbəsəm// adj

adj ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    Burdensome or hindering, as if a weight or drag; vexatious.

    ""You can throw off your cumbersome disguise here," said Lucy, though the words could scarcely be distinguished, from her excessive agitation, Evelyn hastily caught up a cloak and cap laid ready for him, and a few minutes brought them into the sitting-room."

  2. 2
    Not easily managed or handled; awkward; clumsy.

    "Cumbersome machines can endanger operators and slow down production."

  3. 3
    Hard, difficult, demanding to handle or get around with.

    "A slave’s work was as cumbersome as toiling on the fields, or in the mines."

  4. 4
    Inert, lumbering, slow in movement.
Adjective
  1. 1
    not elegant or graceful in expression wordnet
  2. 2
    difficult to handle or use especially because of size or weight wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
cumbrousunwieldyall thumbsawkwardawkwardblunderheaded

Antonyms

All antonyms
light

Example

More examples

"English is like a gated community; access is possible but cumbersome."

Etymology

From Middle English cumbyrsum, cummyrsum; equivalent to cumber (“hindrance”) + -some. Compare encumber and incumbent.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.