cumbersome
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cumbersome
Describes an action or process that is unnecessarily complicated, laborious, or inefficient.
Das Ausfüllen des Formulars war sehr umständlich und hat lange gedauert.
Filling out the form was very cumbersome and took a long time.
'Umständlich' (cumbersome) is derived from the noun 'der Umstand' (circumstance). The expression 'Umstände machen' means to cause unnecessary trouble or effort. So 'umständlich' describes something that involves unnecessary steps or complications.
Bitte mach keine Umstände, ein Glas Wasser reicht mir völlig.
Please don't go to any trouble; a glass of water is perfectly enough for me.
You can recognize the meaning from the context: If 'umständlich' (cumbersome) refers to a process or action, it means 'kompliziert' (complicated). If it refers to a person or their way of expressing themselves, it means 'steif' (stiff) or 'weitschweifig' (long-winded).
Die Registrierung für den Kurs war ein umständlicher Prozess.
Registration for the course was a cumbersome process.
In the meaning 'kompliziert' (complicated), the word often describes procedures. Typical combinations are 'ein umständliches Verfahren' (a cumbersome procedure), 'ein umständlicher Weg' (a roundabout way), or, as an adverb, 'etwas umständlich erklären' (to explain something in a cumbersome way).
Er hat mir den Weg zum Bahnhof sehr umständlich beschrieben.
He described the way to the train station to me in a very cumbersome way.
When the word describes a person or their behavior, it has a negative connotation. It means that the person is complicated, slow, or overly formal in how they deal with others or communicate.
Mit seiner umständlichen Art macht er sich das Leben oft selbst schwer.
With his long-winded manner, he often makes life difficult for himself.
simple / just
'einfach' and 'umständlich' are opposites when it comes to routes, explanations, or procedures. You use 'einfach' when something is easy to understand or straightforward to do. You use 'umständlich' when something is unnecessarily complicated and requires more steps than would be necessary. An 'einfacher Weg' leads directly to the goal. An 'umständlicher Weg' makes things slower or more difficult.
Die Anmeldung war umständlich, weil ich drei verschiedene Formulare ausfüllen musste.
The registration process was cumbersome because I had to fill out three different forms.
Tim erklärt mir den Weg mit einer einfachen Skizze.
Tim explains the way to me with a simple sketch.