cumbersome C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities US /ˈkʌmbɚsəm/ UK /ˈkʌmbəsəm/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 adj large or heavy and therefore difficult to handle; unwieldy The cumbersome filing system slowed every transaction. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 adj · large or heavy and... unwieldybulkyawkwardclumsyburdensomeponderous ↔ Opposites handymanageableconvenientlightweight Word family Derived forms cumbersomelycumbersomeness Related forms cumberencumberencumbrance Etymology AI details From Middle English cumber ('to hinder, burden') + the adjectival suffix -some; ultimately from Old French encombrer ('to obstruct'). encombrer Old French View etymology graph -> Topics Describing Qualities External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # cumbersome **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** adj **IPA (US):** /ˈkʌmbɚsəm/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈkʌmbəsəm/ ## Meanings 1. large or heavy and therefore difficult to handle; unwieldy ## Examples - The cumbersome filing system slowed every transaction. ## Synonyms - unwieldy - bulky - awkward - clumsy - burdensome - ponderous ## Antonyms - handy - manageable - convenient - lightweight ## Derived Forms - cumbersomely - cumbersomeness ## Related Forms - cumber - encumber - encumbrance ## Roots and Affixes - Root: encombrer ## Etymology From Middle English cumber ('to hinder, burden') + the adjectival suffix -some; ultimately from Old French encombrer ('to obstruct'). ## AI Etymology Cumbersome is from Middle English cumber ('to hinder, burden') + the adjectival suffix -some; ultimately from Old French encombrer ('to obstruct'). Important recorded forms include encombrer (Old French). Morphologically, the word is a built form whose named elements carry part of the historical sense. The current sense covers large or heavy and therefore difficult to handle; unwieldy. The wider family includes derived forms such as cumbersomely and cumbersomeness and related words such as cumber, encumber, and encumbrance. ## Topics - Describing Qualities markdown