ham-handed

/'hæm,fistid/ Cách viết khác : (ham-handed) /'hæm,hændid/
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Thân thiện
ham-handed

A clumsy waiter spills a drink with his ham-handed movements.

Definition
  1. Adjective:
    • Clumsy or inept, especially with the hands: Describes a person who is physically awkward, particularly in manual tasks, often resulting in dropped items or poor coordination.
    • Tactless or awkward in action or manner: Can extend to describe actions, decisions, or interventions that are crude, insensitive, or lacking in finesse.
Usage
  • The adjective ham-handed is used to describe a person's physical clumsiness or the awkward nature of an action.
  • It is typically used in a critical or negative context.
  • It often modifies nouns like , , , , or a person's name/role.
Examples

  • Describing a person:

    • The new intern was so ham-handed that he broke two coffee mugs on his first day.
    • A ham-handed mechanic can do more harm than good to your car's engine.

  • Describing an action or effort:

    • The company's ham-handed response to the customer complaint made the situation worse.
    • His ham-handed attempt at diplomacy offended everyone in the room.
Advanced Usage
  • "Ham-handed" can be used metaphorically beyond physical clumsiness to criticize policies, management styles, or communication that is blunt and ineffective.
    • The ham-handed regulations stifled innovation instead of encouraging it.
    • Her ham-handed leadership created a culture of fear in the department.
Variants and Related Words
  • Ham-fisted (adj): A direct synonym, with the same meaning of being clumsy or tactless.
    • He made a ham-fisted attempt to fix the leak.
  • Heavy-handed (adj): Similar in meaning, often implying oppressive or overly forceful action.
    • The teacher's heavy-handed discipline was resented by the students.
Synonyms
  • Clumsy: Lacking grace or skill in movement.
  • Awkward: Lacking skill or dexterity.
  • Bumbling: Acting in a confused or inept way.
  • Maladroit: Inefficient or unskillful.
  • Inept: Having or showing no skill.
Antonyms
  • Dexterous: Demonstrating neat skill, especially with the hands.
  • Adroit: Clever or skillful in using the hands or mind.
  • Graceful: Having or showing grace or elegance.
  • Skillful: Having or showing skill.
  • Tactful: Having or showing tact.
ham-handed

A clumsy waiter spills a drink with his ham-handed movements.

Adjective
  1. lacking physical movement skills, especially with the hands
    • a bumbling mechanic
    • a bungling performance
    • ham-handed governmental interference
    • could scarcely empty a scuttle of ashes, so handless was the poor creature- Mary H. Vorse

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