cumbersome

adjective

cum·​ber·​some ˈkəm-bər-səm 

1

: unwieldy because of heaviness and bulk

a cumbersome package

2

: slow-moving : ponderous

cumbersome administrative procedures

3

dialect : burdensome, troublesome

cumbersomely adverb

cumbersomeness noun

Synonyms

• awkward
• bunglesome
• clumsy
• clunky
• cranky
• cumbrous
• ponderous
• ungainly
• unhandy
• unwieldy

Choose the Right Synonym for cumbersome

heavy, weighty, ponderous, cumbrous, cumbersome mean having great weight.

heavy implies that something has greater density or thickness than the average of its kind or class.

a heavy child for his age

weighty suggests having actual and not just relative weight.

a load of weighty boxes

ponderous implies having great weight because of size and massiveness with resulting great inertia.

ponderous elephants in a circus parade

cumbrous and cumbersome imply heaviness and bulkiness that make for difficulty in grasping, moving, carrying, or manipulating.

wrestled with the cumbrous furniture

early cameras were cumbersome and inconvenient

Examples of cumbersome in a Sentence

Squad members, already decked out in cumbersome chemical suits, put on masks and rubber gloves. —Ray Wilkinson, Newsweek, 11 Mar. 1991

He got the approval of the higher-ups, but the course was scuttled by members of his own department, who devised all kinds of cumbersome, silly requirements and prerequisites. —Alice Munro, New Yorker, 20 Mar. 1989

He cut some segments of the 2" pine but discovered that … a cumbersome system of braces would be needed to hold the sides straight. —John Updike, Couples, 1968

The application process is cumbersome and time-consuming.

Her expanded job title is really cumbersome.

Recent Examples on the Web

The best security updates, however, are the ones that make usability easier rather than more cumbersome. —Davey Winder, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024

Those rules imposed by Legislature have made getting a proposal on the ballot more expensive and cumbersome, requiring supporters to raise millions of dollars to hire professional firms to gather signatures because of the increasingly complex process. —Jeffrey Schweers, Orlando Sentinel, 1 Nov. 2024

This signals a more a hands-off approach, which should help allay private-sector worries about cumbersome guardrails. —Colin Demarest, Axios, 24 Oct. 2024

Each review platform has rules and processes for removing content, but these procedures are often cumbersome. —Ray Ravaglia, Forbes, 20 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

see cumber entry 1

First Known Use

1535, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Kids Definition

cumbersome

adjective

cum·​ber·​some ˈkəm-bər-səm 

: hard to handle or manage because of size or weight

cumbersomely adverb

cumbersomeness noun