ponderous
AdjectiveWordNet 3.0
Adjective (3)
- slow and laborious because of weight“the heavy tread of tired troops”“moved with a lumbering sag-bellied trot”“ponderous prehistoric beasts”“a ponderous yawn”Synonyms: heavylumbering
- having great mass and weight and unwieldiness“a ponderous stone”“a ponderous burden”“ponderous weapons”
- labored and dull“a ponderous speech”
Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)
Ponderous \Pon"der*ous\, a. [L. ponderosus, from pondus, -eris, a weight: cf. F. pond['e]reux. See Ponder.]
1.Very heavy; weighty; as, a ponderous shield; a ponderous load; the ponderous elephant. [1913 Webster]
The sepulcher . . . Hath oped his ponderous and marble jaws.— Shak.[1913 Webster]
2.Important; momentous; forcible. "Your more ponderous and settled project." --Shak. [1913 Webster]
3.Heavy; dull; wanting; lightless or spirit; as, a ponderous style; a ponderous joke. [1913 Webster]
Ponderous spar (Min.), heavy spar, or barytes. See Barite. [1913 Webster]