Maladroit

Maladroit is an adjective that means ineffective or bungling.  The word adroit has French origins and means skilful or clever. Our word of the day adds the prefix M-A-L which means ‘not,’ and gets us a word that means useless or unskilled. Here’s an example of maladroit in use: Given our basketball team’s tendency toward maladroit ball handling, it’s a wonder we ever scored any points. An inability to handle the ball with skill is usually not a good sign for a team.