ungainly

adjective

un·​gain·​ly ˌən-ˈgān-lē 

1

a

: lacking in smoothness or dexterity : clumsy

ungainly movements

b

: hard to handle : unwieldy

an ungainly contraption

2

: having an awkward appearance

a large ungainly bird

ungainliness noun

Did you know?

What do you have to gain by knowing the root of ungainly? Plenty. The gain in ungainly is an obsolete English adjective meaning "direct" that ultimately comes from the Old Norse preposition gegn, meaning "against." (It is unrelated to the noun in "economic gains" or the verb in "gain an advantage"; those came to English by way of Anglo-French.) Ungainly can describe someone who is clumsy, as in "a tall, ungainly man"; or something that causes you to feel clumsy when you try to handle it, as in "a car with ungainly controls"; or something that simply looks awkward and out of place, as in "an ungainly strip mall."

Synonyms

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

Examples of ungainly in a Sentence

He was tall and ungainly.

getting the ungainly couch up the stairs was a real chore

Recent Examples on the Web

With two soldiers able to wrestle the ungainly seven foot long M20 into position on its tripod, the mobility of such a lethal system proved to be a game changer. —Mike Hanlon, New Atlas, 12 Oct. 2024

Series 2 cars, built through 1971, made concessions to U.S. safety regulations, and the Series 3 cars, available as a convertible and an ungainly 2+2, were powered by a 5.3-liter V12 engine. —Robert Ross, Robb Report, 28 Sep. 2024

Unfortunately, such spaciousness has long come at a price that includes ungainly styling, severely narrow staterooms in the outer hulls, and squirrely handling on big seas—not to mention a lack of compatibility with many marina slips due to the form’s bulky proportions. —Michael Verdon, Robb Report, 4 Aug. 2024

The hagiography of the Arena brand doesn’t always fit in with the rest of ESPN’s programming, which is an ungainly mix of live sports, commercials for sports gambling and news reports on the damaging impact of sports gambling on live sports. —Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

obsolete gain direct, from Middle English gayn, geyn, from Old English gēn, from Old Norse gegn, from gegn, preposition, against; akin to Old English gēan- against — more at again

First Known Use

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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Kids Definition

ungainly

adjective

un·​gain·​ly ˌən-ˈgān-lē 

: clumsy sense 1a, awkward

ungainliness noun