gawky

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈɡɔki/ UK /ˈɡɔːki/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
awkward, ungainly, and clumsy

The gawky teenager tripped over his own feet on the stairs.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · awkward, ungainly, and clumsy clumsy awkward ungainlyganglyuncoordinatedlanky

Opposites

graceful nimble elegant poised

Word family

Derived forms gawkinessgawkily

Related forms gawk

Etymology

From 'gawk' (perhaps from dialectal 'gaw' 'to stare', from Old Norse 'ga' 'to heed') plus the adjectival suffix '-y'.

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# gawky

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈɡɔki/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈɡɔːki/

## Meanings
1. awkward, ungainly, and clumsy

## Examples
- The gawky teenager tripped over his own feet on the stairs.

## Synonyms
- clumsy
- awkward
- ungainly
- gangly
- uncoordinated
- lanky

## Antonyms
- graceful
- nimble
- elegant
- poised

## Derived Forms
- gawkiness
- gawkily

## Related Forms
- gawk

## Etymology
From 'gawk' (perhaps from dialectal 'gaw' 'to stare', from Old Norse 'ga' 'to heed') plus the adjectival suffix '-y'.

## AI Etymology
Gawky comes from 'gawk' (perhaps from dialectal 'gaw' 'to stare', from Old Norse 'ga' 'to heed') plus the adjectival suffix '-y'. The history is deliberately cautious: the proposed comparison is useful for orientation, but the wording leaves room for uncertainty rather than forcing a false certainty. In present use, it is used as an adjective meaning "awkward, ungainly, and clumsy", so the historical material remains connected with the current sense rather than standing as bare ancestry. The wider English family includes derivatives such as gawkiness and gawkily and related forms such as gawk, showing how the same historical material continues to organize neighboring vocabulary. Its semantic neighborhood is marked by clumsy, awkward, ungainly, and gangly on one side and contrasts such as graceful, nimble, and elegant on the other, locating the modern specialization without adding a new origin story.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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