laboured
/ˈleɪbəd
/(US labored)
adjective
1Done with great effort and difficulty: his breathing was laboured...
- In a labored effort, he stood up and paid a closer inspection to this enigmatic item.
- Larry's voice came in short, labored gasps as it slowly became more difficult to breathe.
- This one had manoeuvred itself into an exposed position and was climbing in a laboured manner up a twisted, dry vine that was coming away from the tree.
Synonyms
strained, difficult, forced, laborious, heavy, awkward
1.1(Especially of humour or a performance) not spontaneous or fluent: one of Alan’s laboured jokes...
- The pacing at times could have been a little more frantic as some of the humour became somewhat laboured.
- Her laboured and forced English accent, and disappointing performances from the rest of the cast, say a lot about the director's capabilities.
- Everything about director, Steven Brill's movie, smacks of desperation, though, given the laboured quality of most of the jokes, and the overall lack of subtlety.
Synonyms
contrived, stiff, strained, stilted, forced, unnatural, artificial, mannered, studied, affected, overdone, overworked, heavy, ponderous, over-elaborate, over-embellished, long-winded, awkward, clumsy, inelegant, turgid, laborious, overwrought, not spontaneous, unconvincing, convoluted, complex, intricate, ornate, elaborate, prolix