ROGET'S THESAURUS OF ENGLISH WORDS AND PHRASES ...

adrift, at fault.
inapt, unapt; inhabile [Fr.]; untractable † , unteachable; giddy &c (inattentive) 458;
inconsiderate &c (neglectful) 460; stupid &c 499; inactive &c 683; incompetent;
unqualified, disqualified, ill-qualified; unfit; quackish; raw, green, inexperienced, rusty,
out of practice.
unaccustomed, unused, untrained &c 537, uninitiated, unconversant &c (ignorant) 491
[Obs.]; shiftless; unstatesmanlike.
unadvised; ill-advised, misadvised; ill-devised, ill-imagined, ill-judged, ill-contrived,
ill-conducted; unguided, misguided; misconducted, foolish, wild; infelicitous; penny wise
and pound foolish &c (inconsistent) 608.
Phr. one's fingers being all thumbs; the right hand forgets its cunning; il se noyerait dans
une goutte d'eau [Fr.]; incidit in Scyllam qui vult vitare Charybdim [Lat.]; out of the
frying pan into the fire; non omnia possumus omnes [Lat.] [Vergil].
700. Proficient -- N. proficient, expert, adept, dab; dabster † , crackerjack; connoisseur &c
(scholar) 492; master, master hand; prima donna [Sp.], first fiddle, top gun, chef de
cuisine, top sawyer; protagonist; past master; mahatma.
picked man; medallist, prizeman † .
veteran; old stager, old campaigner, old soldier, old file, old hand; man of business,
man of the world.
nice hand, good hand, clean hand; practiced hand, experienced eye, experienced hand;
marksman; good shot, dead shot, crack shot; ropedancer, funambulist † , acrobat; cunning
man; conjuror &c (deceiver) 548; wizard &c 994.
genius; mastermind, master head, master spirit.
cunning blade, sharp blade, sharp fellow; jobber; cracksman &c (thief) 792 [Obs.];
politician, tactician, strategist.
pantologist † , admirable Crichton, Jack of all trades; prodigy of learning.
701. Bungler -- N. bungler; blunderer, blunderhead † ; marplot, fumbler, lubber, duffer,
dauber, stick; bad hand, poor hand, poor shot; butterfingers † .
no conjurer, flat, muff, slow coach, looby † , lubber, swab; clod, yokel, awkward squad,
blanc-bec; galoot † .
land lubber; fresh water sailor, fair weather sailor; horse marine; fish out of water, ass
in lion's skin, jackdaw in peacock's feathers; quack &c (deceiver) 548; lord of misrule.
sloven, slattern, trapes † .
amateur, novice, greenhorn (learner) 541.
Phr. il n'a pas invente' la poudre [Fr.]; he will never set the Thames on fire; acierta
errando [Lat.]; aliquis in omnibus nullus in singulis [Lat.].
702. Cunning -- N. cunning, craft; cunningness † , craftiness &c adj.; subtlety,
artificiality; maneuvering &c v.; temporization; circumvention.
chicane, chicanery; sharp practice, knavery, jugglery † ; concealment &c 528; guile,
doubling, duplicity &c (falsehood) 544; foul play.
diplomacy, politics; Machiavelism; jobbery, backstairs influence.
art, artifice; device, machination; plot &c (plan) 626; maneuver, stratagem, dodge,
sidestep, artful dodge, wile; trick, trickery &c (deception) 545; ruse, ruse de guerre [Fr.];