cumbersome

English

Etymology

From Middle English cumbyrsum, cummyrsum; equivalent to cumber (“hindrance”) +‎ -some. Compare encumber and incumbent.

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkʌmbəsəm/
(US) IPA^(key): /ˈkʌmbɚsəm/
Audio (Southern England): (file)

Adjective

cumbersome (comparative more cumbersome, superlative most cumbersome)

Burdensome or hindering, as if a weight or drag; vexatious.
- 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter VII, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 54:
  "You can throw off your cumbersome disguise here," said Lucy, though the words could scarcely be distinguished, from her excessive agitation, Evelyn hastily caught up a cloak and cap laid ready for him, and a few minutes brought them into the sitting-room.
Not easily managed or handled; awkward; clumsy.
Cumbersome machines can endanger operators and slow down production.
Hard, difficult, demanding to handle or get around with.
A slave’s work was as cumbersome as toiling on the fields, or in the mines.
Inert, lumbering, slow in movement.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Translations

burdensome or hindering, as if a weight or drag; vexatious; cumbrous

Afrikaans: hinderlik, moeilik
Bulgarian: тежък (bg) (težǎk), обременителен (bg) (obremenitelen)
Dutch: hinderlijk (nl), lastig (nl), moeilijk (nl), moeizaam (nl), zwaar (nl)
Dzongkha: ལྗིད་ཅན (ljid can)
Finnish: vaivalloinen (fi), hankala (fi)
French: encombrant (fr)
Galician: pesado (gl), custoso, traballoso
German: hinderlich, lästig, mühsam (de), beschwerlich (de)
Hungarian: bumfordi (hu)
Italian: ingombrante (it)
Korean: 주체스럽다 (jucheseureopda), 불편하다 (ko) (bulpyeonhada)
Macedonian: те́жок (téžok)
Maori: hīrawerawe
Polish: uciążliwy (pl) m
Portuguese: incómodo (pt) (Portugal), incômodo (pt) (Brazil)
Russian: обремени́тельный (ru) (obremenítelʹnyj), затрудни́тельный (ru) (zatrudnítelʹnyj), тя́гостный (ru) (tjágostnyj)
Spanish: pesado (es), cargante (es), penoso (es), oneroso (es)
Swedish: otymplig (sv)
Turkish: külfetli (tr)

not easily managed or handled; awkward

Afrikaans: onhandig, moeilik
Bulgarian: неудобен (bg) (neudoben)
Dutch: lastig (nl), moeilijk (nl), moeizaam (nl), onhandig (nl), zwaar (nl), omslachtig (nl)
Finnish: kömpelö (fi), hankalasti käsiteltävä, hankalakäyttöinen
Galician: aparatoso
German: (objects) sperrig (de), (procedure) umständlich (de)
Hungarian: nehézkes (hu)
Italian: difficile da usare, macchinoso (it)
Macedonian: о́бемен (óbemen), неу́добен (neúdoben)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: uhåndterlig
Plautdietsch: schwoafalich
Polish: nieporęczny (pl) m, niewygodny (pl) m
Portuguese: desajeitado (pt)
Russian: громо́здкий (ru) (gromózdkij), неудо́бный (ru) (neudóbnyj)
Spanish: aparatoso (es), abultado (es)
Turkish: zor taşınır

hard, difficult, demanding to handle

Afrikaans: moeilik
Chinese:
Cantonese: 麻煩／麻烦 (maa⁴ faan⁴)

Mandarin: 麻煩／麻烦 (zh) (máfan)
Dutch: lastig (nl), moeilijk (nl), moeizaam (nl)
Finnish: vaivalloinen (fi), rasittava (fi)
French: pénible (fr), fastidieux (fr)
German: schwierig (de)
Hungarian: nehéz (hu)
Italian: difficile (it), farraginoso (it), complesso (it)
Ottoman Turkish: دشوار (düşvâr)
Polish: nieporęczny (pl) m
Russian: сло́жный (ru) (slóžnyj), проблематичный (ru) (problematičnyj)
Spanish: farragoso (es), dispendioso (es)
Turkish: zor (tr)

inert, lumbering, slow in movement

Dutch: log (nl), lastig (nl)
Finnish: kömpelö (fi)
French: lourd (fr), lent (fr)
German: schwerfällig (de)
Hungarian: lomha (hu)
Italian: gravoso (it)
Russian: объёмный (ru) (obʺjómnyj), грузный (ru) (gruznyj), объёмистый (ru) (obʺjómistyj)
Turkish: ağır (tr), hantal (tr)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Italian: ^{(please verify)} scomodo (it)