Ungainly — Un*gain ly, a. [OE. ungeinliche, adv., fr. ungein inconvenient; un + Icel. gegn ready, serviceable; adv., against, opposite. See {Un } not, and {Gain}, a., {Again}.] [1913 Webster] 1. Not gainly; not expert or dexterous; clumsy; awkward; uncouth; … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Ungainly — Un*gain ly, adv. In an ungainly manner. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
ungainly — [ungān′lē] adj. [ME ungeinliche < ungein, perilous (< un , not + ON gegn, ready, serviceable, akin to OE gegn: see AGAIN) + liche, LY1] 1. awkward; clumsy 2. coarse and unattractive adv. Archaic in an ungainly manner ungainliness n … English World dictionary
ungainly — index incompetent, inelegant, inept (incompetent), uncouth Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
ungainly — (adj.) 1610s, originally unfit, improper, from M.E. ungeinliche, from ungein (c.1400) inconvenient (from UN (Cf. un ) (1) not + O.N. gegn convenient ) + like … Etymology dictionary
ungainly — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ clumsy; awkward. DERIVATIVES ungainliness noun. ORIGIN from obsolete gainly «graceful», from an Old Norse word meaning straight … English terms dictionary
ungainly — adjective Etymology: obsolete gain direct, from Middle English gayn, geyn, from Old English gēn, from Old Norse gegn, from gegn, preposition, against; akin to Old English gēan against more at again Date: 1611 1. a. lacking in smoothness or… … New Collegiate Dictionary
ungainly — [[t]ʌnge͟ɪnli[/t]] ADJ GRADED If you describe a person, animal, or vehicle as ungainly, you mean that they look awkward or clumsy, often because they are big. The dog, an ungainly mongrel pup, was loping about the road... Paul swam in his… … English dictionary
ungainly — adj. Ungainly is used with these nouns: ↑walk … Collocations dictionary
ungainly — un|gain|ly [ʌnˈgeınli] adj [Date: 1600 1700; Origin: gainly proper, graceful, pleasing (14 20 centuries), from gain direct, kind, useful (10 19 centuries), from Old Norse gegn] moving in a way that does not look graceful ▪ a tall ungainly… … Dictionary of contemporary English
