1. awkward

causing inconvenience

Example Sentences:
'they arrived at an awkward time'

2. awkward

lacking grace or skill in manner or movement or performance

Example Sentences:
'an awkward dancer'
'an awkward gesture'
'too awkward with a needle to make her own clothes'
'his clumsy fingers produced an awkward knot'

• clumsy
• clunky
• gawky
• ungainly
• unwieldy
• graceless
• ungraceful
• labored
• laboured
• strained
• wooden

3. awkward, bunglesome, clumsy, ungainly

difficult to handle or manage especially because of shape

Example Sentences:
'an awkward bundle to carry'
'a load of bunglesome paraphernalia'
'clumsy wooden shoes'
'the cello, a rather ungainly instrument for a girl'

• bunglesome
• clumsy
• ungainly

• unmanageable
• unwieldy

4. awkward, clumsy, cumbersome, ill-chosen, inapt, inept

not elegant or graceful in expression

Example Sentences:
'an awkward prose style'
'a clumsy apology'
'his cumbersome writing style'
'if the rumor is true, can anything be more inept than to repeat it now?'

• clumsy
• cumbersome
• ill-chosen
• inapt
• inept

5. awkward, embarrassing, sticky, unenviable

hard to deal with; especially causing pain or embarrassment

Example Sentences:
'awkward (or embarrassing or difficult) moments in the discussion'
'an awkward pause followed his remark'
'a sticky question'
'in the unenviable position of resorting to an act he had planned to save for the climax of the campaign'

• embarrassing
• sticky
• unenviable

• difficult
• hard

6. awkward, ill at ease, uneasy

socially uncomfortable; unsure and constrained in manner

Example Sentences:
'awkward and reserved at parties'
'ill at ease among eddies of people he didn't know'
'was always uneasy with strangers'

• ill at ease
• uneasy