ˈȯwə(r)d adjective
( -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English awkeward in the wrong direction, upside down, from awke turned the wrong way, left-handed (from Old Norse öfugr turned the wrong way) + -ward; akin to Old High German abuh turned the wrong way, bad, evil, Old Saxon aƀuh, Latin opacus shady, obscure, Old Slavic opaky turned backward, Armenian haka- toward
1. obsolete
a. : perverse , froward
an awkward pride in my nature — Henry Fielding
b. : adverse , unfavorable
with awkward winds and with sore tempests driven — Christopher Marlowe
2.
a. : lacking dexterity or skill especially in the use of the hands or of instruments : clumsy
she was too awkward with a needle to make her own clothes
b. : showing the result of inexpert handling or faulty craftsmanship : ill-made
the form of writing used … was extremely crude and was confined chiefly to expressing thoughts by means of awkward pictures — R.W.Murray
3.
a. : lacking ease, grace, or deftness of movement : not graceful
she had large feet and her walk was awkward and ungainly
b. : appearing ill-proportioned, outsize, or poorly fitted together : ungainly
how long, tall, quick, strong, or awkward in looks he was — Carl Sandburg
4. : lacking ease, grace, or effectiveness of expression : cumbersome
an awkward piece of writing
a title which is extremely awkward in English — R.A.Hall b.1911
5.
a. : lacking social grace and assurance : feeling or showing embarrassment : ill at ease
he hesitated, awkward and bashful, shifted his weight from one leg to the other — Jack London
b. : causing embarrassment : inconvenient , difficult
sometimes his quick brain runs him into awkward situations — John Ennis
spared her from explanations and professions which it was exceedingly awkward to give — Jane Austen
6. : inexpertly designed, placed, or organized : poorly adapted for use or handling
attempts to combine … a single picture out of these awkward and contradictory tests — Havelock Ellis
the dykes and drains make these roads so very awkward — Dorothy Sayers
7. : requiring caution : somewhat dangerous
the guide let himself down an awkward cliff
Synonyms:
clumsy , inept , maladroit , gauche , ungainly , lumbering , gawky : awkward , clumsy , inept , maladroit , and gauche denote lack of grace, ease, skill, or fitness in appearance or movement, action or speech, use or function; ungainly , lumbering , and gawky denote a similar lack, usually due to cumbersome build or ill-proportioned structure. awkward may apply to a person who is lacking in muscular coordination or is deficient in poise
you're as awkward, McGovery, as a bull calf — Anthony Trollope
It often implies shyness and self-consciousness
I, sitting in silence, felt awkward; but I was too shy to break into any of the groups that seemed absorbed in their own affairs — W.S.Maugham
It may apply to an object that is not easily handled or dexterously managed
awkward round boats
to a situation or action likely to cause embarrassment or discomfiture
an easy and welcome solution to an otherwise awkward problem — W.L.Sperry
or to modes of expression that are cumbersome or confused
an awkward sentence
clumsy may denote a person or an animal that is blundering or lacking in skill or grace and often describes one who is grotesque and clattering from awkwardness, especially as an inherent tendency
a clumsy bear
a clumsy and timid horseman — W.M.Thackeray
It may also denote a person or object that is heavy or unwieldy
the clumsy machinery of the plot — T.S.Eliot
a clumsy horse
inept , which applies to both persons and their actions or products, is the strongest word of those here compared, for it suggests total failure
an inept mechanic
an inept administrator
an inept translation
and carries a suggestion of futility or absurdity
by what inept logic must we bow to our creation if it be a machine and spurn it as “unreal” if it happens to be a painting or a poem? — Lewis Mumford
maladroit may describe remarks or actions that are out of place, ill-timed, or tasteless and that cause embarrassment or resentment, or persons responsible for them
Lloyd George, though a brilliant statesman, was often a maladroit polictician — Malcolm Thomson
gauche also describes a person or something he says or does and often refers to a general tendency to be ill at ease from shyness, inexperience, or lack of breeding, and to increase one's discomfiture by inappropriate acts or remarks
these gauche characters just don't know the rules of the game — John Farrelly
that shy, rather gauche fellow, slinking nervously about the corridors — H.J.Laski
ungainly indicates marked physical gracelessness often due to excessive size
she had long ungainly limbs and was very awkward in the use of them — Anthony Trollope
lumbering describes one that is large and ponderous, formidable when at rest and moving, if at all, with real or apparent difficulty
so that his slow lumbering plane would not be left behind by the faster bombers — H.L.Merillat
gawky suggests graceless proportions and the self-consciousness often attendant on such an appearance
one of these abrupt, rather gawky women, all hands and feet — Valentine Williams