Onerous
Tax forms, HOA rules, and group projects with no leader all feel heavier than their page count.
Learn This WordMeaning
Involving a great deal of effort, trouble, or difficulty; burdensome.
Memory trick
ONUS = burden → onerous = burden-some.
Examples
The onboarding process felt onerous, with too many manual steps.
He found the reporting requirements onerous and time-consuming.
They simplified the form to make compliance less onerous.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Etymology
From Latin onerosus "burdensome," from onus "burden, load."
Usage Notes
Excellent for policies, processes, and requirements that create “bureaucratic pain.”
Real-life contexts
Use for UX: "This flow is onerous, too many clicks."
Use for policy: "The requirement is onerous for small teams."
Use for improvement: "How can we make this less onerous without losing safety?"
Common Mistakes
Onerous is about burden/effort, not complexity alone.
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Start LearningQuick Facts
Part of Speech
adjective
Difficulty
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