gawky
/ˈɡɔːki/adjective, noun
gawky is spelled G-A-W-K-Y: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 12 million words in written English, the 105,204th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, gawky means “Awkward, ungainly; lacking grace or dexterity in movement” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in gawky?
| Letters | 5: G-A-W-K-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 12 million words; the 105,204th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is gawky?
Gawky appears about once in every 12 million words in written English, the 105,204th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce gawky?
- /ˈɡɔːki/
Gawky has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-gawky.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of gawky
- gawkier comparative
- gawkiest superlative
- gawkies plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does gawky mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Awkward, ungainly; lacking grace or dexterity in movement.
- 2
Left-handed.
noun
- 1
An awkward, ungainly person.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Gawky in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense awkward, ungainly:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | maladroit, godiche |
| Spanish | insignificante |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does gawky come from?
From gawk + -y.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).