awkward

awkward 主要表示“动作笨拙、场面令人尴尬或与人相处不自在”，也可指某人或某事难以应付。

💡 记忆钩子

想象一个人手脚不协调，做事总是“卡住”：手上动作不灵活，是笨拙；事情或场面卡住，让大家不知所措，就是尴尬；在人群中不知如何应对，就是社交不自在。这个核心还可以延伸到难处理的人或事。

📝 学习建议

不要把 awkward 只记成“尴尬”；先掌握“动作笨拙”和“场面尴尬”两条主线，再扩展到社交不自在。
awkward 不等于单纯的“害羞”或“内向”，重点是表现得不自然、不会应对，或情形本身难处理。

📖 中文释义

adj

core 动作笨拙

📖 指手脚或使用工具时不灵活，动作不协调，像是总有一点儿“卡住”。

💡 常用结构是“be awkward at + 动作或活动”以及“awkward with + 工具或身体部位”。它描述能力或动作表现，不一定表示这个人永远如此；不要把它误解成“动作慢”，重点是缺乏协调和熟练度。

I was awkward with the scissors and cut the paper unevenly.

我用剪刀时很笨拙，把纸剪得参差不齐。

He is awkward at dancing, but he is getting better.

他跳舞时动作很笨拙，但正在慢慢进步。
core 令人尴尬；难以处理

📖 指某个场面、问题或时刻让人不知该说什么、做什么，因而显得尴尬或难以应付。

💡 常见搭配是“an awkward moment/situation/question/silence”，也可说“make things awkward”。它通常描述情形带来的不自然和难堪，不只是“困难”；表示一般难度时应优先考虑“difficult”或“hard”。

There was an awkward silence after her question.

她问完问题后，现场出现了令人尴尬的沉默。

It was awkward when both of us reached for the same chair.

我们俩同时伸手去拿同一把椅子时，场面很尴尬。
common 社交上不自在

📖 形容一个人在聚会或交谈中不太会与人互动，表现得拘谨、不自然或不知道如何接话。

💡 常用结构是“feel awkward at/in + 社交场合”和“be awkward around + 某人”。它强调实际互动时的不自然表现，不等同于性格内向；内向的人也可能很会交际，而 awkward 的人可能只是缺少应对经验。

I always feel awkward at large parties.

我在大型聚会上总是感到不自在。
common 难对付的；棘手的

📖 指人或事情不容易控制、处理或合作，像是会不断给人添麻烦；这是从“难以灵活应对”的核心意思延伸出来的。

💡 常见结构是“an awkward customer/person/problem”或“awkward to handle/manage”。这种用法在英国英语中较常见，有时带有轻微的责备或幽默色彩；不要把它理解成单纯的“奇怪”。

The old machine is awkward to handle in a small kitchen.

这台旧机器在狭小的厨房里很难操作。

more awkward comparative most awkward superlative

noun

rare 笨拙或难对付的人或事物

📖 把 awkward 当作名词时，指一个笨拙、不得体或难以应付的人或事物，是形容词核心意思的名词化用法。

💡 通常出现在“the awkward”或复数形式等特定表达中，不能像普通人物名词那样随意使用。现代日常交流中应优先改说“an awkward person”或“an awkward situation”，以免显得生硬或过时。

awkwards plural

📘 英文释义 (WordNet) 共 6 组

socially uncomfortable; unsure and constrained in manner; ;

同义词集: awkward ill at ease(p) uneasy

awkward and reserved at parties

ill at ease among eddies of people he didn't know

was always uneasy with strangers

近似: uncomfortable

causing inconvenience

同义词集: awkward

they arrived at an awkward time

近似: inconvenient

hard to deal with; especially causing pain or embarrassment; ; ;

同义词集: awkward embarrassing sticky unenviable

awkward (or embarrassing or difficult) moments in the discussion

an awkward pause followed his remark

a sticky question

in the unenviable position of resorting to an act he had planned to save for the climax of the campaign

近似: difficult, hard

not elegant or graceful in expression; ; ;

同义词集: awkward clumsy cumbersome inapt inept ill-chosen

an awkward prose style

a clumsy apology

his cumbersome writing style

if the rumor is true, can anything be more inept than to repeat it now?

lacking grace or skill in manner or movement or performance; ; ;

同义词集: awkward

an awkward dancer

an awkward gesture

too awkward with a needle to make her own clothes

his clumsy fingers produced an awkward knot

反义: graceful 近似: clumsy, clunky, gawky, labored, laboured, strained, ungainly, unwieldy, wooden 参见: ugly

difficult to handle or manage especially because of shape; ; ;

同义词集: awkward bunglesome clumsy ungainly

an awkward bundle to carry

a load of bunglesome paraphernalia

clumsy wooden shoes

the cello, a rather ungainly instrument for a girl

近似: unmanageable, unwieldy

🌳 词源

源自表示“奇怪、笨拙”的词根 awk 加后缀 -ward，原有“朝错误方向”的意味。

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”).

🔄 变式

awkwards plural more awkward compar most awkward superl

🏷 单词标签 & 词根