fish out of water

outsider

One excluded from group

• misfitOne who doesn't fit in
• strangerPerson not yet known
• foreignerNon-native person

alien · newcomer · expatriate · transplant · immigrant · refugee · outcast · interloper · visitor · sojourner

novice

Inexperienced newcomer to field

• rookieInexperienced newcomer
• beginnerOne who lacks experience
• greenhornInexperienced, gullible newcomer

neophyte · amateur · newcomer · uninitiated · untrained · fledgling · apprentice · green · raw · wet behind the ears

confused

Unable to understand

• bewilderedThoroughly puzzled and confused
• lostUnable to navigate
• perplexedThoroughly confused, uncertain

baffled · discombobulated · dazed · flummoxed · nonplussed · puzzled · adrift · unmoored · at sea · clueless

unadjusted

Not altered or corrected

• unacclimatedNot yet adjusted
• unaccustomedNot yet familiar with
• maladaptedPoorly suited to conditions

unsuited · ill-suited · unprepared · culture shock · adjustment · acclimatization · transition · struggling · floundering · sinking

awkward

Lacking grace or ease

• uncomfortableCausing unease or distress
• ill-at-easeExperiencing social discomfort
• self-consciousUncomfortably aware of oneself

embarrassed · uneasy · anxious · nervous · tense · stiff · inhibited · flustered · unsettled · on edge

• fishing idiomshook line and sinker, the one that got away, cast a wide net, take the bait, reel in
• Animal Idiomsblind as a bat, brave as a lion, busy bee, copycat, dark horse
• idiomstime flies, hit the sack, seize the day, ring a bell, break a leg
• rom-comrom-com, romantic comedy, meet cute, meet-cute, love triangle
• story tropesquest, hero's journey, plot twist, chosen one, red herring
• water gamesMarco Polo, sharks and minnows, chicken fight, chicken fights, keep away