Cumbrous

/ˈkʌmbɹəs/ · adjective

Meaning

(also figuratively) Unwieldy because of size or weight; cumbersome..

Definitions by Sense

1. (also figuratively) Unwieldy because of size or weight; cumbersome.
2. Causing hindrance or obstruction.
3. Giving annoyance or trouble; troublesome, vexatious.

Example Sentences

Possession's load was grown so great, / He sunk beneath the cumbrous weight: […]

He therefore came to a ſudden reolution of throvving off thoſe cumbrous ornaments of learning, vvhich, as he imagined, hindered his reception; and vvith no other images than arcs and angles, commenced a man of vvit and jocularity.

The rest of the furniture is in a suitable style, particularly an arm-chair of cumbrous workmanship, constructed of wood, curiously turned, with a high back and triangular seat, said to have been used by Judge Popham in the reign of Elizabeth.

[W]e, upon a large experience in the French literature, affirm that it would be nearly impossible (perhaps strictly so) to cite an instance of that cumbrous and unwieldy style which disfigures English composition so extensively.

A correspondent of The American has taken exception to the use, in a recent paragraph in this column, of the word “electrocution.” The writer of the paragraph referred to is conscious that the word, like other etymological hybrids, lacks euphony and consistency; but during the formative period succeeding the introduction of a new idea not yet provided with a verbal exponent, the safest course is to follow general popular usage. The idea must be expressed, and the choice lies between a cumbrous word and a cumbrous sentence, the former of which seems the lesser evil. “Electrocution” has been widely used, even by scientific men, while the only plausible alternative thus far suggested—“electrothany”—though possessing the merit of unmixed ancestry, is inadequate in that it carries no penal signification.

In each country writing began with pictures of the objects intended. […] In the course of thousands of years, this cumbrous system developed into alphabetic writing.

This class of apparatus, often called today the "poste classique", gave first-class service in every respect but became cumbrous if a large layout had to be controlled.

Evidently the imagines agentes, fantastically gesticulating from their places and arousing memory by their emotional appeal, seemed to him as cumbrous and useless for practical mnemonic purposes as they do to us.

Synonyms for cumbrous

Antonyms for cumbrous

Related Words

Word Forms

• more cumbrous
• most cumbrous
• combrous

Usage Notes

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