cumbrous
/ˈkʌmbɹəs/
"cumbrous" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“cumbrous” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Unwieldy because of size or weight; cumbersome.
Corpus desk
Index EN-cumbrous · cumbrous · English
cumbrous · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "C" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | cumbrous |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈkʌmbɹəs/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “cumbrous” in English
Rare enough to double-check
cumbrous is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈkʌmbɹəs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for cumbrous, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Late Middle English combrous (“causing obstruction; clumsy; obstructed; bothersome, difficult; burdensome, onerous; serious; causing trouble, troublesome; dangerous; immoral; unjust, wrongful; upset”) [and other forms], from komber, kumbre (“distress; … The correct English form is cumbrous, spelled C-U-M-B-R-O-U-S.
Definition
- 1Unwieldy because of size or weight; cumbersome.
- 2Causing hindrance or obstruction.
- 3Giving annoyance or trouble; troublesome, vexatious.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how cumbrous appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Possession's load was grown so great, / He sunk beneath the cumbrous weight: […]
He therefore came to a ſudden reolution of throvving off thoſe cumbrous ornaments of learning, vvhich, as he imagined, hindered his reception; and vvith no other images than arcs and angles, commenced a man of vvit and jocularity.
Etymology
From Late Middle English combrous (“causing obstruction; clumsy; obstructed; bothersome, difficult; burdensome, onerous; serious; causing trouble, troublesome; dangerous; immoral; unjust, wrongful; upset”) [and other forms], from komber, kumbre (“distress; destruction”) + -ous (suffix forming adjectives). The English word is analysable as cumber + -ous.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.