maladroitly

adverb

Definition of maladroitlynext
as in unskillfully

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for maladroitly
  1. clumsily
  2. gracelessly
  3. ineptly
  4. awkwardly
Adverb
  • All the while, the question of whether they’re related by blood lurks in the background, kicked slowly down the road until the finale clumsily throws it into focus.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 23 Sep. 2026
  • What detracts from the film is the clumsily emphatic foreshadowing of a dramatic plot turn, which is pretty much spelled out by an alarm company technician who sells Miguel on the wisdom of upgrading to a next-level home security system.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of clumsily
Adverb
  • Lines that are too close together reinforce the author’s supremacy, gracelessly.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026
  • This kind of beauty has nothing to do with perfection, which is distributed so arbitrarily and approximated so gracelessly.
    — Jia Tolentino, New Yorker, 11 July 2026
Definition of gracelessly
Adverb
  • The collapse of the Constitution’s balance of powers between three branches of government got us into an unneeded war conducted ineptly.
    — Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 15 Mar. 2026
  • Dancing the Poznan really ineptly, mind you, but dancing nonetheless.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Sep. 2025
Definition of ineptly
Adverb
  • Canada banged awkwardly into Williams’ knee on a box out during her late free throws and the Valkyries’ star was being cared for by an athletic trainer on the bench in the waning moments.
    — Janie McCauley, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
  • There’s a too-much-ness to Street Fighter that extends beyond its tone to an overstuffed and awkwardly unfurled plot that sends characters scrambling in all directions to no particular end.
    — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of awkwardly
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

maladroit
maladroitly
maladroitness
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Cite this Entry

“Maladroitly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/maladroitly. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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