flubbing

verb

present participle of flub
1
as in fumbling
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way added too much flour and flubbed the gravy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stumbling
to make a mistake at some point in your training you're going to flub, so don't let it rattle you

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of flubbing But Andrew Garfield told a funny story about Pattinson's old roommate, Tom Sturridge, flubbing his own audition for a part in the film. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Mar. 2026 Simeon Cottle, the leading scorer for Kennesaw State men’s basketball, stands accused of intentionally flubbing his performance in a March 1, 2024, game against Queens University. — Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 21 Jan. 2026 Filmmaking is flubbing the catch, and sometimes knowing the fool that's to blame is yourself. — Susan Sontag, Vogue, 26 Oct. 2025 David Jiricek made what could have been a costly turnover in his own zone in the first period, flubbing a touch-pass into his own slot, but Robert Thomas couldn’t convert as Gustavsson steered him aside. — Michael Russo, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flubbing
  1. fumbling
  2. stumbling
  3. blowing
  4. tripping
  5. botching
Verb
  • The Packers’ offense left the field, but came back after it was ruled that Watson was down before fumbling.
    — Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Here was his senior running back, who scored a 44-yard touchdown in their state championship win months earlier, fumbling on the very first play of the Blue-White scrimmage.
    — Kevin Fishbain, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of fumbling
Verb
  • Unlike other festivals, where audiences can be more forgiving, stumbling out of the gate at Venice can prove impossible for a contender to recover from.
    — Nate Jones, Vulture, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Analysis from Zeki Data shows that where OpenAI and Anthropic are making gains in the AI talent market, Google DeepMind (and to some extent Meta) are stumbling.
    — Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of stumbling
Verb
  • Its exterior is rich with symbolism, from stone carvings representing the all-seeing eye of God to a golden statue, atop the highest spire, of an angel blowing a trumpet to herald the Second Coming.
    — Brandon Griggs, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2026
  • There is a micronation on a fortress at sea off the coast of Great Britain, and the British government once considered blowing it up.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of blowing
Verb
  • The nearly two-minute spot depicts a club-wielding bureaucrat chasing and tripping a child on a bike and another stealing a boy’s scooter.
    — Ben Paviour, Sacbee.com, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The boy was outside by himself for a total of nine minutes and had fallen into the pool after tripping over an inflatable chair, the report added.
    — Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of tripping
Verb
  • The look was a polarizing one, leading the Spaniard to blame one of his brothers for botching the assignment.
    — Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 30 July 2026
  • Atlanta was out-everythinged in an 83-71 loss to the Indiana Fever on Thursday, botching a chance at a statement game.
    — Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 5 June 2026
Definition of botching

Browse Nearby Words

flubbed
flubbing
flubs
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Flubbing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flubbing. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All