blundered; blundering
ˈblən-d(ə-)riŋ 
1
: to move unsteadily or confusedly
In their exhaustion they often blundered against each other …—
Norman Mailer
Norman Mailer2
: to make a mistake through stupidity, ignorance, or carelessness
blundered by not acting sooner
1
: to utter stupidly, confusedly, or thoughtlessly
blundered an apology
2
: to make a stupid, careless, or thoughtless mistake in
… blundering matters through ignorance …—Rafael Sabatini
Rafael Sabatini
: a gross error or mistake resulting usually from stupidity, ignorance, or carelessness
a costly tactical blunder
Synonyms
Examples of blunder in a Sentence
Verb
We blundered along through the woods until we finally found the trail.
Another skier blundered into his path.
The government blundered by not acting sooner.
Noun
The accident was the result of a series of blunders.
fixed a minor blunder in the advertising flyer
Recent Examples on the WebAnshel Pfeffer, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2024
Finishing 45th overall, Mr. Trump trails even the mid-19th-century failures who blundered the country into a civil war or botched its aftermath like James Buchanan, Franklin Pierce and Andrew Johnson.
—Peter Baker, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2024
As usual, Aniston and Sandler are immensely likable, blundering amiably through a choice selection of mystery clichés.
—Danny Horn, EW.com, 4 Jan. 2024
The presidents of the schools blundered in their responses, giving responses that were widely regarded as more focused on legal terms than human decency.
—Samuel Schaffer, Washington Examiner, 7 Jan. 2024
After 9/11, the United States blundered into two wars that each lasted longer than a decade, destabilized an entire region, and permanently tarnished its reputation.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 18 Oct. 2023
Governments, bureaucracies and military institutions that have blundered their way through many a Godzilla adventure are barely seen here.
—Richard Kuipers, Variety, 22 Nov. 2023
Iran and its nonstate allies, while reluctant to launch an all-out battle with Israel, may be preparing for or blunder into one.
—Joost R. Hiltermann, Foreign Affairs, 22 Nov. 2023
It cannot be blundered through because of public pressure or a desire for revenge.
—Ami Ayalon, Foreign Affairs, 31 Oct. 2023
Mekela Panditharatne, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024
Other times, a bullpen blunder or bang-bang play on the bases.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Nicki Minaj, who is currently on her Pink Friday 2 World Tour, faced a nipple-baring blunder on stage during her show in Orlando, Florida, on March 22.
—Michelle Lee, Peoplemag, 25 Mar. 2024
Send any news, comments, bad AI art, and worse AI chat blunders to talk@qz.com.
—Susan Howson, Quartz, 9 Mar. 2024
The blunder lit trading algorithms ablaze, sending Lyft’s stock price surging over 60% in after-hours trading.
—James Broughel, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
In what was seen as the crucial blunder of the trial, the prosecution asked Mr. Simpson, who was not called to testify, to try on the gloves.
—Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024
In the season one finale of the comedy, which aired on Aug. 12, 2022, Molly declared plans to give away every penny of her $120 billion divorce settlement from tech tycoon John Novak (Adam Scott) after a publicly embarrassing business blunder.
—Brande Victorian, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Apr. 2024
Ahead, the biggest beauty pageant scandals and blunders to emerge from the pageant world over the years.
—Laura Lane, Peoplemag, 2 Apr. 2024
Verb
Previous Israeli prime ministers, too, blundered into bloody wars on the basis of misguided strategies and faulty advice from their military and intelligence advisers.
—Anshel Pfeffer, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2024
Finishing 45th overall, Mr. Trump trails even the mid-19th-century failures who blundered the country into a civil war or botched its aftermath like James Buchanan, Franklin Pierce and Andrew Johnson.
—Peter Baker, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2024
As usual, Aniston and Sandler are immensely likable, blundering amiably through a choice selection of mystery clichés.
—Danny Horn, EW.com, 4 Jan. 2024
The presidents of the schools blundered in their responses, giving responses that were widely regarded as more focused on legal terms than human decency.
—Samuel Schaffer, Washington Examiner, 7 Jan. 2024
After 9/11, the United States blundered into two wars that each lasted longer than a decade, destabilized an entire region, and permanently tarnished its reputation.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 18 Oct. 2023
Governments, bureaucracies and military institutions that have blundered their way through many a Godzilla adventure are barely seen here.
—Richard Kuipers, Variety, 22 Nov. 2023
Iran and its nonstate allies, while reluctant to launch an all-out battle with Israel, may be preparing for or blunder into one.
—Joost R. Hiltermann, Foreign Affairs, 22 Nov. 2023
It cannot be blundered through because of public pressure or a desire for revenge.
—Ami Ayalon, Foreign Affairs, 31 Oct. 2023
Noun
For instance, if a user enters basic election questions into a third-party search engine that cannibalizes OpenAI models, the answers can be rife with errors, outdated facts, and other blunders.
—Mekela Panditharatne, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024
Other times, a bullpen blunder or bang-bang play on the bases.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Nicki Minaj, who is currently on her Pink Friday 2 World Tour, faced a nipple-baring blunder on stage during her show in Orlando, Florida, on March 22.
—Michelle Lee, Peoplemag, 25 Mar. 2024
Send any news, comments, bad AI art, and worse AI chat blunders to talk@qz.com.
—Susan Howson, Quartz, 9 Mar. 2024
The blunder lit trading algorithms ablaze, sending Lyft’s stock price surging over 60% in after-hours trading.
—James Broughel, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
In what was seen as the crucial blunder of the trial, the prosecution asked Mr. Simpson, who was not called to testify, to try on the gloves.
—Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024
In the season one finale of the comedy, which aired on Aug. 12, 2022, Molly declared plans to give away every penny of her $120 billion divorce settlement from tech tycoon John Novak (Adam Scott) after a publicly embarrassing business blunder.
—Brande Victorian, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Apr. 2024
Ahead, the biggest beauty pageant scandals and blunders to emerge from the pageant world over the years.
—Laura Lane, Peoplemag, 2 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'blunder.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near blunder
Cite this Entry
“Blunder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blunder. Accessed 1 May. 2024.
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