FUMBLING Synonyms: 151 Similar and Opposite Words

fumbling 1 of 2

adjective

as in uncomfortable

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Dissimilar Words

fumbling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of fumble

as in blowing

to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way her assistant fumbled the party plans by getting the time wrong on the invitations

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in groping

to search for something blindly or uncertainly the librarian fumbled for the light switch as she entered the dark room

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in stumbling

to make a mistake just when it looked like he was going to get away with the ruse, he fumbled

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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 fumbling

Adjective

Cook rushed for 111 yards before his latest fumbling woes for the Bills, who are off to a 4-1 start for the sixth time in eight seasons. — CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026 Cook rushed for 111 yards before his latest fumbling woes for the Bills, while Allen got more than 100 of his yards rushing on scrambles, repeatedly escaping the pocket and rendering useless the Rams’ tenacious secondary coverage. — ABC News, 12 Oct. 2026 Their fumbling rebellion unearths buried desires and the quiet violence of growing up in contemporary Singapore. — Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 8 Sep. 2026 The first drive began with a false start and ended with Carr taking a sack and fumbling. — Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 7 Sep. 2026 That's the age of the lead character of Lee's seventh novel; Jeon-Gi is a fumbling initiate into the bewildering mysteries of preadolescence. — Colin Dwyer, NPR, 4 Aug. 2026 The fact that his fumbling journey toward fatherhood is not just tolerable but genuinely touching is a testament to the disarming earnestness with which Firstman approaches the clichéd set-up. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 15 May 2026 No more fussing, fumbling, or making a mess of my counter. — Alicia Geigel, Southern Living, 29 Apr. 2026 Gone is the fumbling little girl of before, replaced by a woman full of anger and ready to take her own life to prove her love. — Ellise Shafer, Variety, 1 Apr. 2026

Verb

The Seahawks had one of the worst turnovers in the NFL this season, fumbling in their own end zone and handing the 49ers a touchdown with 13 seconds left in the first half. — Dan Zaksheske Outkick, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026 Specifically, Nico Iamaleava struggled, fumbling once and throwing interceptions to Oregon’s Koi Perich and Jerry Mixon. — Elias Esquivel, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026 The league is concerned about contracts that are vulnerable to manipulation, like field goals where a kicker could intentionally miss or a wide receiver intentionally fumbling a pass. — Contessa Brewer, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026 Clinicians should be working to support us, not fumbling incompetently or making paternalistic determinations. — Meg Leduc, STAT, 23 Sep. 2026 Secure bags together with an industry secret Airline staff have an ability to bob and weave through terminals without fumbling their bags. — Abbey Hudetz, Travel + Leisure, 18 Sep. 2026 Not that Georgian masculinity, with its macho, bellicose posturing and archaic codes of honor, is portrayed as anything other than fumbling and futile. — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026 On the next drive, Love was sacked twice in a row, fumbling on the second after being crunched by Andrew Van Ginkel and Blake Cashman. — Jon Krawczynski, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026 The Bears led 31-24 at halftime, despite committing nine first-half penalties, fumbling the ball away once and going for a fourth-and-1 from their own 21 and not making it. — Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 13 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fumbling

Adjective

This defense needs to find a way to make quarterbacks uncomfortable without becoming blitz crazy, and that means Chop Robinson, Josh Uche and Malik Herring must step up and win more of their 1-on-1 assignments.

— Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 18 Oct. 2026
The dispute raised uncomfortable questions about the limits of political expression on a concert stage — questions Sheeran did not directly address Saturday night.

— Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of uncomfortable

Verb

This inspires Other Mommy to gruesomely kill Frank in front of Bela, including blowing his head up in an outrageous explosion of blood.

— William Earl, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026
Gray noise, per The New York Times, may sound like wind blowing or steady rainfall and works for apartment dwellers sensitive to sharp or fluctuating noises.

— Hanna Wickes, Charlotte Observer, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of blowing

Verb

Big banks made changes to overdraft fees and fraud protections following previous testimony, for example, while former Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf abruptly resigned in 2016 after stumbling during hearings on the bank’s fake accounts scandal.

— Reuters, NBC news, 13 Oct. 2026
In an era of geotags and influencers, there’s something deeply satisfying about stumbling upon a place that still feels like a secret.

— Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of stumbling

Adjective

Rubin told the news outlet that if the business parts ways with the wooden puppet, store employees will receive a $15,000 bonus and the bird’s artist, Bliss Kolb of Seattle, will receive $1 million.

— Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
The recovered objects include a Baroque wooden angel from the Church of Vera Cruz, a copy of Ecce Homo by Spanish Renaissance painter Luis de Morales, and a panel depicting the Seventh Station of the Cross.

— Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of wooden

Verb

The combustion of Graham Platner’s candidacy in Maine is another blow to a Democratic Party trying to mend its reputation after bungling the 2024 presidential election.

— Editorial Board, Washington Post, 9 July 2026
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, who polled at 5% in the CBS survey, accused Becerra of bungling the federal government’s response to COVID-19, mpox and the influx in child migrants under former President Joe Biden.

— Ben Paviour, Sacbee.com, 29 Apr. 2026

Definition of bungling

Verb

Depending on the machine and settings, that material ends up in a purge tower built alongside the print, or in a collection of little plastic doll's-house-looking spaghetti balls, affectionately known as printer poop.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026
Yet his next leadership election is looking smooth compared with the past couple of bouts to lead the Senate GOP.

— semafor.com, semafor.com, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of looking

Verb

In overtime, the Golden Knights quickly took advantage of a tripping penalty on Kings center Scott Laughton.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026
Behar, who dislocated the shoulder after catching her heel and tripping last week at The View‘s ABC studio building in New York, is expected to return to the show next week.

— Greg Evans, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of tripping

Browse Nearby Words

fumbles

fumbling

fume

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Fumbling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fumbling. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of fumbling

adjective

verb

Example Sentences

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