a bit numbery
- idiom
- UK
:
un poco técnico
- The professor's explanation was a bit numbery and hard to follow for most students.
Examples
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Her presentation was a bit numbery, focusing too much on raw data and statistics.
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I like the design, but this version looks a bit numbery compared to the others.
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The presentation was a bit numbery for my taste.
-
I find this explanation to be a bit numbery.
-
Her presentation was a bit numbery, focusing too much on raw data and statistics.
-
The professor's explanation was a bit numbery and hard to follow for most students.
-
I like the design, but this version looks a bit numbery compared to the others.
Synonyms
62
5.9
Relating to amounts or measurements shown in numbers
48
4.2
Very exact and careful like in math
34
4.1
About numbers rather than words
1
4.0
Relating to simple number calculations like adding and subtracting
Antonyms
How Technical
- Formal
3
9.9
69
4.1
- Specialized
350
4.4
- UK
507
2.6
276
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
a + bit + numbery
The phrase is a straightforward composition of the quantifier 'a bit' + an adjectival form derived from 'number' (number + -y) meaning 'numerical' or 'full of numbers', so its sense 'slightly too technical/mathematical' is directly inferable. Although 'numbery' is informal, the morphological process is productive and the overall meaning follows common cross-linguistic patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the base lexemes and the '-y' adjectival pattern will understand it.
Etymology
A bit numbery comes from the simple picture of something full of numbers, like a talk that reads as a list of figures or a person who sounds like a calculator. So when something is a bit numbery, it feels too 'technical' or 'mathematical' and is harder to follow than clear ideas.