bumbling
adjective
bum·bling
ˈbəm-b(ə-)liŋ 
: awkwardly blundering or faltering
a bumbling speaker
: prone to or marked by foolish mistakes
a bumbling attempt to fix the problem
… many Americans see the F.D.A. as bumbling and inefficient …—
Herbert Burkholz
Herbert Burkholz
bumblingly
adverb
… none of them truly wants him in her home while he tries, bumblingly, to get his act together …
—Laura Collins-Hughes
Laura Collins-Hughes
Examples of bumbling in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Cubs were fortunate to have the bumbling Mets in town at the right time, and cruised to their third straight win behind home runs from Moisés Ballesteros, Nico Hoerner and Happ.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 17 Apr. 2026
Another film might want to demystify its spell and show you the creaky machinery under the surface—the bumbling ineptitude of the industry suits, the little humiliations of touring life.
—Mitch Therieau, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2026
This quality didn’t wear as well on Leslie Knope, or perhaps the supporting characters didn’t do enough to balance her out, or perhaps, alas, a bumbling woman just read differently.
—Jennifer Armstrong, IndieWire, 15 Apr. 2026
Set in 1953 after the titular dictator’s passing, the film revels in the chaotic, messy, bumbling power struggle that ensues among figures like Nikita Khrushchev (Steve Buscemi) and Georgy Malenkov (Jeffrey Tambor).
—Debby Wolfinsohn, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Apr. 2026
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Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 17 Apr. 2026
Another film might want to demystify its spell and show you the creaky machinery under the surface—the bumbling ineptitude of the industry suits, the little humiliations of touring life.
—Mitch Therieau, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2026
This quality didn’t wear as well on Leslie Knope, or perhaps the supporting characters didn’t do enough to balance her out, or perhaps, alas, a bumbling woman just read differently.
—Jennifer Armstrong, IndieWire, 15 Apr. 2026
Set in 1953 after the titular dictator’s passing, the film revels in the chaotic, messy, bumbling power struggle that ensues among figures like Nikita Khrushchev (Steve Buscemi) and Georgy Malenkov (Jeffrey Tambor).
—Debby Wolfinsohn, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for bumbling
Cite this Entry
“Bumbling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bumbling. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.
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