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blun·der | \ ˈblən-dər 
\
\blundered; blundering\ ˈblən-d(ə-)riŋ \
\Definition of blunder
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : to move unsteadily or confusedly
In their exhaustion they often blundered against each other …— Norman Mailer
2 : 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
blunder
nounDefinition of blunder (Entry 2 of 2)
: a gross error or mistake resulting usually from stupidity, ignorance, or carelessness
a costly tactical blunder
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Other Words from blunder
Verb
blunderer \ ˈblən-dər-ər \ noun
\ nounSynonyms for blunder
Synonyms: Verb
- boob
- [British],
- err,
- flub,
- fluff,
- foul up,
- fumble,
- goof (up),
- louse up,
- mess (up),
- screw up,
- slip up,
- stumble,
- trip
Synonyms: Noun
- bobble,
- boo-boo,
- boob
- [British],
- brick,
- clanger
- [British],
- clinker,
- error,
- fault,
- flub,
- fluff,
- fumble,
- gaff,
- gaffe,
- goof,
- inaccuracy,
- lapse,
- miscue,
- misstep,
- mistake,
- oversight,
- screwup,
- slip,
- slipup,
- stumble,
- trip
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
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Recent Examples on the Web: Verb The military has recently blundered in cyberspace, including an issue where troops with fitness apps unwittingly broadcast location data at secret bases worldwide.
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Alex Horton, Anchorage Daily News, "Soldiers with top-secret clearances say they were forced to use an app that could endanger them," 12 Nov. 2019 The military has recently blundered in cyberspace, including an issue where troops with fitness apps unwittingly broadcast location data at secret bases worldwide.
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Alex Horton, Washington Post, "Soldiers with top-secret clearances say they were forced to use an app that could endanger them," 12 Nov. 2019 At the halfway point, the season is in ruins, reduced to rubble by their blundering offense.
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Rich Campbell, chicagotribune.com, "Column: The Bears’ ineptitude has a prideful group angry and searching for answers as the 2019 season spirals away," 3 Nov. 2019 Fletcher loaded the bases in the sixth on an infield single when Voit hesitated at first base on a slow roller, and Ottavino (6-5) blundered two batters later.
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San Diego Union-Tribune, "Ottavino botches throw, Yankees miss chance to clinch," 18 Sep. 2019 The Post blundered, as the authors of the study on which Sanders based his claim point out.
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Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, "Column: Medical bankruptcy is an American scandal — and that’s not debatable," 4 Sep. 2019 Like Trump before him, Biden just might blunder his way into the general election in spite of himself.
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Jonathan S. Tobin, National Review, "Do Joe Biden’s Gaffes Still Matter in the Age of Trump?," 13 Aug. 2019 Together, the trends cast a harsh light on safety procedures and blundering responses to some incidents involving tourists, even in cases where the victims seem to have died from natural causes.
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New York Times, "Crisis Hits Dominican Republic Over Deaths of U.S. Tourists," 23 June 2019 But without democracy, a succession of Hong Kong governments have blundered into political crises by underestimating or ignoring the public’s concerns — and each time, Beijing gets some of the blame.
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Keith Bradsher, BostonGlobe.com, "How Hong Kong’s leader makes the biggest political retreat by China under Xi," 15 June 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun But police had made a huge blunder, raiding the wrong house, the suit alleged.
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Paige Fry, chicagotribune.com, "Chicago police raided home in search of suspect, but he had been in prison for years, lawsuit alleges," 5 Nov. 2019 Trump’s decision to withdraw from northern Syria drew global condemnation, left Kurdish fighters feeling betrayed, and raised the possibility that the president had made a strategic blunder that would open a volatile new chapter in the war.
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BostonGlobe.com, "The Russians were patrolling near the strategically important city of Manbij, vacated by the Americans and Syrian Kurds and now occupied by Syrian government troops. The statement also said Russian troops were coordinating “with the Turkish side.”," 16 Oct. 2019 Ermm, what? Such a humongous blunder shouldn't come about very often.
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SI.com, "National Anthem Antics: 6 Times Stadiums Got it Totally Wrong in International Fixtures," 8 Sep. 2019 But his pawn structure was dubious, and Carlsen capitalized on a blunder and won.
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Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, "Magnus Carlsen Was Defeated, But the Draw Remains Dominant in Chess," 30 Aug. 2019 Marc Skinner didn’t hold back his disappointment after the Pride fell 2-1 on the road to the Washington Spirit Saturday night, ceding an early goal off a defensive blunder and falling to last spot in the NWSL standings.
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Julia Poe, Pro Soccer USA, "Marc Skinner looks ahead after loss drops Orlando Pride to bottom of table," 26 Aug. 2019 Ramon Laureano had what looked like a game-deciding blunder in the second inning.
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Shayna Rubin, The Mercury News, "Oakland A’s rally for victory over Houston Astros," 23 July 2019 Unloading what has become a fixer-upper for $8 billion to $10 billion would mark a rare blunder for the Los Angeles investor and his private equity partners.
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Meg James, latimes.com, "Univision owners want to sell. After 12 years and $13 billion, what went wrong?," 15 July 2019 What started with a hilarious pregame blunder continued as the game unfolded.
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Andrew Joseph, For The Win, "Jordan Clarkson singlehandedly infuriated Cavaliers fans during Game 1," 31 May 2018
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'blunder.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for blunder
blunder
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of blunder
(Entry 1 of 2)
: to move in an awkward or confused way
: to make a stupid or careless mistake
blunder
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of blunder (Entry 2 of 2)
: a bad mistake made because of stupidity or carelessness
See the full definition for blunder in the English Language Learners Dictionary
blunder
verbblun·der | \ ˈblən-dər \
\blundered; blundering
Kids Definition of blunder
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : to move in a clumsy way
2 : to make a mistake
blunder
nounKids Definition of blunder (Entry 2 of 2)
: a bad or stupid mistake
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The first known use of blunder was in the 14th century
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