as in clumsy
difficult to use or operate especially because of size, weight, or design
even my five-year-old laptop seems clunky next to some of the really slim new models
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Recent Examples of clunky
Waldorf Round Coffee Table This on-sale coffee table has plenty of room for books, decor, and actual coffee, but won’t feel too clunky or oversized for a space.
—
Megan Schaltegger, People.com, 22 Mar. 2025
Ramirez cooked up this back story to create more emotional links, and thus more stakes, between the singers in 1996, but it’s weighed down by clunky dialogue (especially between the sisters) and heavy-handed exposition.
—Elisabeth Vincentelli, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2025
Lionsgate dropped a new trailer for Ballerina—or, as the studio is now calling it, From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, because what every film needs is a needlessly clunky title.
—Ars Technica, 19 Mar. 2025
For over an hour at Molineux, Everton’s attack had been clunky.
—Patrick Boyland, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clunky
Megan Schaltegger, People.com, 22 Mar. 2025
Ramirez cooked up this back story to create more emotional links, and thus more stakes, between the singers in 1996, but it’s weighed down by clunky dialogue (especially between the sisters) and heavy-handed exposition.
—Elisabeth Vincentelli, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2025
Lionsgate dropped a new trailer for Ballerina—or, as the studio is now calling it, From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, because what every film needs is a needlessly clunky title.
—Ars Technica, 19 Mar. 2025
For over an hour at Molineux, Everton’s attack had been clunky.
—Patrick Boyland, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clunky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clunky
Adjective
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Raw also advertised Bayley challenging Lyra Valkyria for the WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship, Penta vs. Dominik Mysterio and the world’s most clumsy GM Adam Pearce making his next fumble of the worst storyline going this WrestleMania season between Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair and Iyo Sky.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes.com,
7 Apr. 2025
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This is why the Trump administration’s DOGE exercise — while clumsy at times — is such an important endeavor despite Democratic efforts to discredit it.—
Editorial,
Boston Herald,
4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Sisterhood in sports can come with awkward moments, though.—
Evan Drellich,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
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In fact, the timing of the 11th annual event in Santa Monica made for some awkward — even, some would say, problematic — optics and messaging for these celebrities.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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As legal professionals gain increasing authority over AI deployment decisions, new internal stakeholders are introduced, making the organizational process of adopting AI systems more cumbersome.—
Nizan Geslevich Packin,
Forbes.com,
28 Mar. 2025
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Like so many others, they are left with an impossible choice: involve the criminal justice system — which may be slow, cumbersome and invasive — or do nothing and hope the situation doesn’t escalate.—
Eric Gonzalez,
New York Daily News,
26 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Providing succulents with too much fertilizer can cause these plants to grow too quickly and develop unwieldy stems that are prone to breaking. 6.—
Lauren Landers,
Better Homes & Gardens,
11 Feb. 2025
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The New York Yankees injury list is reaching unwieldy levels.—
Russel Honoré,
Newsweek,
6 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Clunky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clunky. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
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