as in clumsy
showing or marked by a lack of skill and tact (as in dealing with a situation)
I refuse to let that bungling incompetent insult me again
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in fumbling
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
bungled the job the first time she tried to do it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bungling
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 6 Aug. 2025
Verb
When Souleymane rehearses his account, in an early scene, Barry admonishes him for blandly reciting (and often bungling) the false facts he’s been given.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 6 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bungling
Adjective
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Maggie is a snoop—and a clumsy one.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
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But the character’s state of servitude is largely hidden in clumsy blocking.—
Frank Rizzo,
Variety,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But Henry hasn’t made a habit of fumbling throughout his career, so this is an unusual stretch.—
Blair Kerkhoff,
Kansas City Star,
26 Sep. 2025
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The uncharacteristic nature of fumbling the ball three times in a row is not lost on the star running back.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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That’s six games without a goal now for their new striker, who still looks awkward in this side.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
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The onion on top is a little awkward to cut and to eat, so think of this as a knife-and-fork cornbread.—
Ann Taylor Pittman,
Southern Living,
5 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Equating your value to your bank account, or blowing cash to feel validated.—
Dossé-Via Trenou,
Refinery29,
5 Oct. 2025
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He and his apprentices host glass- blowing classes on Fridays and Saturdays (reservation required), when guests can make anything from a bowl to a tumbler to an ornament.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
4 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Richards turned his attention to the botched finish later in the match.—
Matthew Couden,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
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There is a Little Havana, with stores and restaurants that evoke those on the island, and a park where men gather to play dominoes beside a monument commemorating the botched Bay of Pigs invasion.—
Jon Lee Anderson,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Seattle’s shockingly inept defense would have been a secondary storyline rather than the headline had quarterback Sam Darnold and the offense capped off their best performance of the year with a second consecutive game-winning drive.—
Michael-Shawn Dugar,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
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If Your Party wants to avoid a similar fate, it would be well advised to be disciplined and electorally oriented—and to drop single-issue activism, hostility to Labour, and inept, baggage-laden figures such as Corbyn.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
4 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Although Beijing has outcompeted Washington in Myanmar up to this point, the junta’s woefully incompetent management of its currency and foreign reserves presents an opportunity for the United States to recalibrate its approach to the country.—
Dan Swift,
Foreign Affairs,
30 Sep. 2025
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California, with its weak and incompetent Governor, has been particularly hard hit!—
Hugh Cameron,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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By the way, Valera wasn’t the only inexperienced Guardian to make a pivotal play.—
Levi Weaver,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
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Fleck said that type of at-the-line adjustment is atypical for such an inexperienced player; Lindsey was making only his fourth collegiate start.—
Andy Greder,
Twin Cities,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bungling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bungling. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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