ponderous

adjective

pon·der·ous ˈpän-d(ə-)rəs How to pronounce ponderous (audio)

: of very great weight

: unwieldy or clumsy because of weight and size

: oppressively or unpleasantly dull : lifeless

ponderous prose

ponderously adverb

ponderousness noun

Did you know?

The Serious History of Ponderous

Ponderous is ultimately from the Latin word for "weight," namely, "pondus" (which also gave us "ponder" and "preponderance" and is related to "pound"). We adopted "ponderous" with the literal sense "heavy" from Anglo-French ponderus in the 15th century, and early on we appended a figurative sense of "weighty," that is, "serious" or "important." But we stopped using the "serious" sense of "ponderous" around 200 years ago - perhaps because in the meantime we'd imposed on it a different figurative sense of "dull and lifeless," which we still use today.

Example Sentences

students struggling to stay awake during a ponderous lecture fell asleep during the ponderous speech

Recent Examples on the Web The ponderous recitation of textual obscurities; the litany of unintelligible names; the holy tone—is this a TV show or a religious exercise?

WSJ, 1 Sep. 2022 Riders have paid the price for that indifference: millions of minutes lost to longer travel time, disruptions from derailments and other unexpected breakdowns, and ponderous shuttle service when the rails increasingly go out of commission.

Elizabeth Koh, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Aug. 2022 The agency has long been criticized as too ponderous, focusing on collection and analysis of data but not acting quickly against new health threats.

CBS News, 17 Aug. 2022 The agency has long been criticized as too ponderous, focusing on collection and analysis of data but not acting quickly against new health threats.

Mike Stobbe, USA TODAY, 17 Aug. 2022 The agency has long been criticized as too ponderous, focusing on collection and analysis of data but not acting quickly against new health threats.

Mike Stobbe, Chicago Tribune, 17 Aug. 2022 The agency has long been criticized as too ponderous, focusing on collection and analysis of data but not acting quickly against new health threats.

Mike Stobbe, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Aug. 2022 The data comes in at a ponderous couple of megabits per second (Mbps).

Jamie Carter, Forbes, 18 July 2022 On a Thursday morning with ponderous clouds and rumbling thunder, our group boarded the Barbara Ann II from Crisfield.

Andrea Sachs, Washington Post, 1 July 2022 See More

单词	ponderousness
释义	ponderous adjective pon·der·ous ˈpän-d(ə-)rəs 1 : of very great weight 2 : unwieldy or clumsy because of weight and size 3 : oppressively or unpleasantly dull : lifeless ponderous prose ponderously adverb ponderousness noun Did you know? The Serious History of Ponderous Ponderous is ultimately from the Latin word for "weight," namely, "pondus" (which also gave us "ponder" and "preponderance" and is related to "pound"). We adopted "ponderous" with the literal sense "heavy" from Anglo-French ponderus in the 15th century, and early on we appended a figurative sense of "weighty," that is, "serious" or "important." But we stopped using the "serious" sense of "ponderous" around 200 years ago - perhaps because in the meantime we'd imposed on it a different figurative sense of "dull and lifeless," which we still use today. Synonyms arid boring colorless drab dreary drudging dry dull dusty flat heavy ho-hum humdrum jading jejune leaden mind-numbing monochromatic monotonous numbing old pedestrian slow stale stodgy stuffy stupid tame tedious tiresome tiring uninteresting wearisome weary wearying See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences students struggling to stay awake during a ponderous lecture fell asleep during the ponderous speech Recent Examples on the Web The ponderous recitation of textual obscurities; the litany of unintelligible names; the holy tone—is this a TV show or a religious exercise? WSJ, 1 Sep. 2022 Riders have paid the price for that indifference: millions of minutes lost to longer travel time, disruptions from derailments and other unexpected breakdowns, and ponderous shuttle service when the rails increasingly go out of commission. Elizabeth Koh, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Aug. 2022 The agency has long been criticized as too ponderous, focusing on collection and analysis of data but not acting quickly against new health threats. CBS News, 17 Aug. 2022 The agency has long been criticized as too ponderous, focusing on collection and analysis of data but not acting quickly against new health threats. Mike Stobbe, USA TODAY, 17 Aug. 2022 The agency has long been criticized as too ponderous, focusing on collection and analysis of data but not acting quickly against new health threats. Mike Stobbe, Chicago Tribune, 17 Aug. 2022 The agency has long been criticized as too ponderous, focusing on collection and analysis of data but not acting quickly against new health threats. Mike Stobbe, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Aug. 2022 The data comes in at a ponderous couple of megabits per second (Mbps). Jamie Carter, Forbes, 18 July 2022 On a Thursday morning with ponderous clouds and rumbling thunder, our group boarded the Barbara Ann II from Crisfield. Andrea Sachs, Washington Post, 1 July 2022 See More Word History Etymology Middle English, from Anglo-French ponderus, from Latin ponderosus, from ponder-, pondus weight First Known Use 15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Kids Definition ponderous adjective pon·der·ous ˈpän-də-rəs 1 : very heavy a ponderous stone 2 : slow or clumsy because of weight and size The elephant moved with ponderous steps. 3 : unpleasantly dull a ponderous speech ponderousness noun as in massiveness the state or quality of being heavy the sheer ponderousness of each stone of the huge pyramid makes its construction all the more remarkable Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance massiveness heaviness weightiness avoirdupois solidity heftiness bulk cumbersomeness hugeness solidness bulkiness substantiality overweight substantialness Antonyms & Near Antonyms lightness weightlessness ethereality airiness delicacy slightness flimsiness insubstantiality etherealness fluffiness See More
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ponderous

adjective

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Kids Definition

adjective

noun