awkward.
Lacking dexterity in the use of the hands, or of instruments.
Meaning & usage
Lacking dexterity in the use of the hands, or of instruments.
John was awkward at performing the trick. He'll have to practice to improve.
Not easily managed or effected; embarrassing.
That was an extremely awkward moment. Everyone was watching.
An awkward silence had fallen.
Lacking social skills, or uncomfortable with social interaction.
I'm very awkward at parties.
Things got awkward when my boss tried a cheesy pick-up line on me.
Perverse; adverse; difficult to handle.
He's a right awkward chap.
These cabinets are going to be very awkward when we move.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ep Proto-Indo-European *-o Proto-Indo-European *h₂epó Proto-Indo-European *h₃ekʷ- Proto-Indo-European *h₂époh₃kʷos Proto-Germanic *abuhaz Old Norse ǫfugrder. Middle English awke English awk Proto-Indo-European *wert-der. Proto-Germanic *wardaz Old English -weard English -ward English awkward From awk (“odd, clumsy”) + -ward. Compare Middle English aukeward (“in the wrong direction”).
Someone or something that is awkward.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ep Proto-Indo-European *-o Proto-Indo-European *h₂epó Proto-Indo-European *h₃ekʷ- Proto-Indo-European *h₂époh₃kʷos Proto-Germanic *abuhaz Old Norse ǫfugrder. Middle English awke English awk Proto-Indo-European *wert-der. Proto-Germanic *wardaz Old English -weard English -ward English awkward From awk (“odd, clumsy”) + -ward. Compare Middle English aukeward (“in the wrong direction”).
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.