different between vexatious vs cumbersome

English

Etymology

a 1650 vexation +? -ous

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /v?k?se???s/
• Rhymes: -e???s

Adjective

vexatious (comparative more vexatious, superlative most vexatious)

1. Causing vexation or annoyance; teasing; troublesome.
2. (archaic) Full of trouble or disquiet

   Synonyms: harassed, distressed, annoyed, vexed

   • 1644, Kenelm Digby, Two Treatises - To My Son Kenelm Digby (preface)

     He leads a vexatious life.

3. (law, of an action) Commenced for the purpose of giving trouble, without due cause.

   a vexatious lawsuit

4. (law, of a party or entity) In the habit of starting vexatious litigation and therefore liable to have restraints placed on one's ability to access the courts.

   a vexatious litigant

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:annoying

Derived terms

• vexatiously
• vexatiousness

Related terms

• vex
• vexation

Translations

References

• vexatious in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• vexatious in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

English

Etymology

cumber (“hindrance”) +? -some.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /?k?mb?s?m/

Adjective

cumbersome (comparative more cumbersome, superlative most cumbersome)

1. Burdensome or hindering, as a weight or drag; vexatious
2. Not easily managed or handled; awkward; clumsy.

   Cumbersome machines can endanger operators and slow down production.

3. Hard, difficult, demanding to handle or get around with.

   A slaves' work was as cumbersome as toiling on the fields, or in the mines.

4. Inert, lumbering, slow in movement

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:difficult

Derived terms

• cumbersomely
• cumbersomeness

Synonyms

• cumbrous
• unwieldy

Translations