adjective
-
of great weight; heavy; huge
-
(esp of movement) lacking ease or lightness; awkward, lumbering, or graceless
-
dull or laborious
a ponderous oration
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ponderous
1375–1425; late Middle English (< Middle French ponderos, pondereuse ) < Latin ponderōsus. See ponder, -ous
Explanation
When you call Frankenstein's monster ponderous, it's not because he likes to ponder the great questions of life. It's because he moves like a Mack truck, only slower and less gracefully. Ponderous also describes a person's manner, or their manner of speaking. If it does, this is a person you will want to avoid. They're solemn, speak slowly about things that are boring, and get to the punchline of a joke about seven years after anyone with half a brain has figured it out for themselves.
Vocabulary lists containing ponderous
Their Eyes Were Watching God
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Mythology
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"The Odyssey," Vocabulary from Part 1 of the epic poem
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“You Wished for This” careens from ponderous ambience to shredded digital noise; The two parts of “Love is in the Air” recasts the yearning of a classic Hollywood love theme into a blood-soaked rictus grin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
Its monolithic character has caused some to call it Brutalist, although it lacks the ponderous dignity of Cold War Brutalism.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
Asked about the characterization of European initiatives to boost growth as slow and ponderous, Lancastle argues this is no longer valid.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 16, 2026
Despite Chelsea's territorial dominance, their fans began to grow frustrated at their ponderous passing and failure to put Wolves to the sword.
From Barron's ● Nov. 8, 2025
The ponderous counterspectacle of things ceasing to be.
From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
