adjectiveIntermediate

awkward

US

/ˈɔːkwərd/

UK

/ˈɔːkwəd/

Meaning

Causing embarrassment or discomfort because a person or situation feels socially difficult to handle.

असहज या शर्मिंदगी भरा, खासकर ऐसी स्थिति जिसे संभालना मुश्किल लगे।

Examples

“There was an awkward silence after nobody answered the teacher’s question.”

awkward silencesocial situation

“I felt awkward asking my new colleague for help on my first day.”

feel awkward doing somethingworkplace

“His awkwardness during the introduction soon disappeared when everyone welcomed him.”

noun formsocial situation

Useful patterns

an awkward situation, moment, or silencefeel awkward doing somethingbe awkward for someonemake a conversation or situation awkward

Word toolkit

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Word family

awkwardly(adverb)
awkwardness(noun)

Common collocations

awkward silenceawkward situationawkward momentfeel awkwardsocially awkwardawkward questionawkward conversation

Common mistakes

Not natural: I felt awkward to ask my manager for feedback.

Better: I felt awkward asking my manager for feedback.

After “feel awkward,” a gerund is usually more natural when describing an uncomfortable action.

किसी असहज काम के बारे में “feel awkward” के बाद आमतौर पर verb का -ing रूप ज़्यादा स्वाभाविक लगता है।

Not natural: There was an awkwardly silence in the room.

Better: There was an awkward silence in the room.

“Silence” is a noun, so it needs the adjective “awkward,” not the adverb “awkwardly.”

“Silence” noun है, इसलिए उसके पहले adjective “awkward” आएगा, adverb “awkwardly” नहीं।

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Word Relationships

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Synonyms

Words with similar meaning

uncomfortableembarrassinguneasyclumsystrained
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Antonyms

Words with contrasting meaning

Learner tip

Use “awkward” for uncomfortable social moments; “awkwardly” describes how someone does something.

असहज सामाजिक पल के लिए “awkward” बोलें; कोई काम किस तरह हुआ, यह बताने के लिए “awkwardly” इस्तेमाल करें।

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What does “awkward” usually describe?

“Awkward” आमतौर पर किस चीज़ का वर्णन करता है?