different between cumbrous vs unwieldy

English

Etymology

cumber +? -ous

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?k?mb??s/

Adjective

cumbrous (comparative more cumbrous, superlative most cumbrous)

1. Unwieldy because of its weight; cumbersome.
   • 1727, Jonathan Swift, Desire and Possession

     He sunk beneath the cumbrous weight.

   • 1840, Thomas De Quincey, Style (published in Blackwood's Magazine)

     that cumbrous and unwieldy style which disfigures English composition so extensively
2. (obsolete) Giving trouble; vexatious.

References

• “cumbrous”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.

English

Alternative forms

• unwieldly (less common, possibly nonstandard)

Etymology

From Middle English unweldi, equivalent to un- +? wieldy. Cognate with Middle Low German unweldich (“unwieldy”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /??n?w??l.di/

Adjective

unwieldy (comparative unwieldier, superlative unwieldiest)

1. (obsolete) Lacking strength; weak.
2. (obsolete) Ungraceful in movement.
3. Difficult to carry, handle, manage or operate because of its size, weight, shape or complexity.
4. Badly managed or operated.

   (Can we add an example for this sense?)

Derived terms

• unwieldiness

Translations

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2021) , “unwieldy”, in Online Etymology Dictionary