Added 9 October 2026
cumbersome
/ˈkʌmbəsəm/ adjective
adjective Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about cumbersome at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- Burdensome or hindering, as if a weight or drag; vexatious.
-
Not easily managed or handled; awkward or clumsy.
Cumbersome machines can endanger operators and slow down production.
-
Hard, difficult, and demanding to handle or get around with.
A slave’s work was as cumbersome as toiling on the fields, or in the mines.
Origin
From Middle English cumbyrsum, cummyrsum; equivalent to cumber (“hindrance”) + -some. Compare encumber and incumbent.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)