English → Latin
“awkward” in Latin
agrestisrural; rustic; wild (of or pertaining to land, fields or the countryside); clownish; rude; uncultivated; coarse; savage;laevusleft; on the left side; clumsy, awkward; foolishrudisrough, raw, uncultivated; unrefined, unskilled, awkward; rudeīnscītusignorant, inexperienced, unskilful; silly, stupidincompositusdisorderly, disorganized; clumsyincultusuntilled, uncultivated; neglected; unadorned, unpolishedimpolītusrough, unpolishedintōnsusunshaven, unshorn; leafy (not cut)inurbānusrustic, ungraceful, unmannerlyinvenustusunlovely, unattractive, homely, ugly; unhappy in love
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
awkward
agrestis (rustic, rude): laevus (left-handed: without dexterity): rudis (rude, uncultivated): inscitus (without the requisite knowledge): incompositus (without apt arrangement; especially of orators and orations). (The words are found in this connection and order), rudis atque incompositus: incultus (uncultivated, whether in manner or mind): impolitus: intonsus (unpolished). (The words are found in this connection and order), intonsus etincultus: inurbanus (uncourteous): invenustus (without attractive beauty): inelegans (tasteless): inconcinnus (without the grace of symmetry or harmonious proportion). To have an awkward gait, corporis motu esse agrestem. Awkward manners, mores rustici, rusticitas.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for awkward?
- The usual Latin words for “awkward” are agrestis, laevus, rudis; also īnscītus, incompositus, incultus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.