nerdy

[nur-dee] / ˈnɜr di /

ADJECTIVE

awkward

Synonyms

STRONGEST

amateurish rude stiff

WEAK

all thumbs artless blundering bulky bumbling bungling butterfingers coarse floundering gawky graceless green having two left feet having two left hands incompetent inept inexpert klutzy lumbering maladroit oafish stumbling uncoordinated uncouth unfit ungainly ungraceful unhandy unpolished unrefined unskilled unskillful

Antonyms

WEAK

adroit artful clever convenient dexterous easy elegant graceful handy skillful straightforward

ADJECTIVE

studious

Synonyms

STRONGEST

bookish contemplative diligent earnest industrious reflective thoughtful

WEAK

academic assiduous bookworm busy careful eager grubbing hard-working intellectual learned lettered meditative sedulous serious well-informed well-read

Antonyms

STRONGEST

ignorant inactive lazy lethargic negligent stupid thoughtless unthoughtful

WEAK

inattentive unscholarly

ADJECTIVE

unpopular

Synonyms

WEAK

abhorred avoided creepy despised detested disesteemed disfavored disliked drip dumpy execrated gross loathed loser lousy obnoxious ostracized out out of favor rejected scorned shunned unaccepted unattractive uncared-for undesirable unloved unvalued unwanted unwelcome weird wimpy

Antonyms

WEAK

delightful desirable fashionable liked popular wanted

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.

However, ChatGPT-maker OpenAI recently said it identified "goblin" and "gremlin" creeping into its systems' responses - a quirk it believes arose after a tool it trained to have a nerdy persona incentivised mentioning the creatures.

From BBC • May 8, 2026

"I grew up in a family of eight boys and one girl, and we were all nerdy kids," 38-year-old Dan Reynolds remembered.

From Barron's • Apr. 12, 2026

The feisty heroine is Iris Hawkins, who, in the course of a tentative love affair with a nerdy engineer named Geoffrey Hale, discovers the pernicious designs of a secret order.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

I fell in with a nerdy set—a small group of academically minded boys who carried their books in briefcases.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 19, 2026

“I was, I don't know. I mean, I had a few friends. We were kinda nerdy, I guess.”

From "An Abundance of Katherines" by John Green