mumbled 1 of 2

adjective

as in muttered

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mumbled

2 of 2

verb

past tense of mumble
as in murmured
to speak softly and unclearly I can't understand you if you mumble

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 mumbled
Verb
After one take — which is usually not worth the celluloid it’s printed on, as the crew and the artists find their feet — Axl mumbled something about being freaked out and disappeared back into the depths of the building. — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026 The convex-concave curves of the open and closed parentheses cup something said by the way, whisperings, secrets mouthed into the reader’s ear, mumbled under the author’s breath. — Literary Hub, 18 Aug. 2026 This succession was muddied thanks to the meddling of the King’s Hand, Otto Hightower, and the king’s own mumbled words on his deathbed to his wife, Alicent. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 20 June 2026 Claiborne mumbled his responses to questions. — Alec Lewis, New York Times, 29 May 2026 The crowd mumbled and shifted as the sinker came slicing downward at impossible speed, arms and legs pinned tight, chin tucked under a matte black helmet. — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 18 May 2026 At last, Henley mumbled something. — Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 1 May 2026 One of the reporters said Bad Bunny often mumbled through the expletives or cut off the word entirely in the show. — James Powel, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026 At times Horne came up and mumbled something about the child’s beauty, the victim remembered. — Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 6 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mumbled
  1. muttered
  2. murmured
  3. shouted
  4. whispered
  5. mouthed
  6. breathed
  7. sputtered
Adjective
  • Often made by anonymous rappers and producers with a monkish dedication to their craft, this isn’t rap for the live show but for the headphones, music where every muttered word and barely-there snare matters.
    — Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 26 June 2026
Definition of muttered
Verb
  • In the stands, fans murmured beneath their breath, wondering what new math the Kiffin’s successor could be pondering.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Someone murmured something about bacon and eggs being more appropriate at this time of day.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of murmured
Adjective
  • Now, the sequence is more likely to end in shouted abuse and maybe a scuffle, the video shot on phones and streamed — sometimes live — on platforms like Kick or Facebook.
    — Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 3 Oct. 2026
  • This blend of styles is not only about presenting contrasts—clean versus shouted vocals, melodic versus dissonant riffs, headbanging versus moshing—but also preserving the murky in-between that only elevates the extreme.
    — Sam Sodomsky, Pitchfork, 7 Jan. 2026
Definition of shouted
Adjective
  • For many leaders, the phrase conjures up whispered alliances, opportunistic loyalty, self-interested maneuvering and the slow poisoning of organizational culture.
    — Harrison Monarth, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
Definition of whispered
Adjective
  • Straker, the foul-mouthed, Daily Mail–provoking British chef, has made his way stateside.
    — Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 7 Oct. 2026
  • The loud-mouthed cameos from ex-soccer players Zlatan Ibrahimović and Eric Cantona in Nike’s World Cup hero film Rip the Script were indicative of this, chiming with an older, more arrogant vision of Nike seen in the ’90s and the aughts.
    — Joe Bobowicz, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of mouthed
Adjective
  • His wraparound, tight-quarters assist on a Keshad Johnson dunk in the second half breathed fire into the lungs of the home crowd.
    — Bryce Miller Columnist, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Nov. 2021
Definition of breathed
Adjective
  • Researchers then installed the electrodes and coated the structure with sputtered gold.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of sputtered

Browse Nearby Words

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Cite this Entry

“Mumbled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mumbled. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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