ham-handed

[ham-han-did] / ˈhæmˈhæn dɪd /

ADJECTIVE

clumsy

Synonyms

STRONGEST

bulky heavy-handed inept ponderous ungainly unwieldy

WEAK

all thumbs blundering blunderous bumbling bungling butterfingered clownish crude elephantine gauche gawkish gawky graceless heavy helpless hulking ill-shaped incompetent inelegant inexperienced inexpert lubberly lumbering lumpish maladroit oafish splay stumbling unable unadept uncoordinated uncouth undexterous uneasy unhandy unskillful untactful untalented untoward weedy

Antonyms

WEAK

adroit agile athletic clever coordinated couth dexterous expert graceful

ADJECTIVE

gauche

Synonyms

WEAK

awkward bumbling clumsy crude graceless green halting heavy-handed ignorant ill-bred ill-mannered inelegant inept insensitive lacking maladroit oafish uncouth uncultured unhappy unpolished wooden

Antonyms

WEAK

elegant graceful mannerly polished refined sophisticated tactful tasteful

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Governments will be tempted by ham-handed policy responses.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

That’s the bigger story that is being lost in the government’s egregious, ham-handed attempt to turn Ábrego García into an object lesson.

From Salon • Jul. 17, 2025

Obama, a Harvard alum, described the freeze as "unlawful and ham-handed".

From BBC • Apr. 15, 2025

While the film’s execution seems expert on the surface, the internal narrative design is unfortunately ham-handed and woefully dull.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2025

As early as January 1990, sentiment on the Well had already begun to sour, and people had begun to grumble that "hackers" were getting a raw deal from the ham-handed powers-that-be.

From The Hacker Crackdown, law and disorder on the electronic frontier by Sterling, Bruce

ham-handed

Example Sentences

Related Words