as in mistake
an unintentional departure from truth or accuracy
played the entire piano piece without a single fumble
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to blow
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
her assistant fumbled the party plans by getting the time wrong on the invitations
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to grope
to search for something blindly or uncertainly
the librarian fumbled for the light switch as she entered the dark room
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in to stumble
to make a mistake
just when it looked like he was going to get away with the ruse, he fumbled
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fumble
Ticked Off, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Jan. 2026
Few things feel like more of a sartorial fumble than visible panty lines under a crisp pair of tailored work pants.
—Abby Morgan Lebet, InStyle, 22 Jan. 2026
Adam Ismail, The Drive, 29 Jan. 2026
Scott’s fumbled attempts to curtail outside influence on his agency raised further concerns at DHS headquarters about his leadership.
—Michael Scherer, The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fumble
Noun
Numerous fumbles and interceptions by both teams highlighted by an offensive series by one team that lasted 14 seconds before punting.
—Ticked Off, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Jan. 2026
Few things feel like more of a sartorial fumble than visible panty lines under a crisp pair of tailored work pants.
—Abby Morgan Lebet, InStyle, 22 Jan. 2026
Verb
Aside from the diamond seats—which are limited to the two highest trims—I’ve fumbled to find anything to write home about in the refreshed Pilot.
—Adam Ismail, The Drive, 29 Jan. 2026
Scott’s fumbled attempts to curtail outside influence on his agency raised further concerns at DHS headquarters about his leadership.
—Michael Scherer, The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for fumble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fumble
Noun
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Instead, recruitment mistakes saw their recent troubles compared to United’s since 2013.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
31 Jan. 2026
-
The open availability of this kind of material poses a threat not only to migrants and activists but anyone with a digital footprint, because depending on AI to sort through it will inevitably lead to mistakes.—
Miles Klee,
Rolling Stone,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
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But aerospace engineers at University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) have discovered a material that blows those two out of the water with nearly thrice the thermal conductivity.—
Abhimanyu Ghoshal,
New Atlas,
27 Jan. 2026
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The shuttle just suddenly blew apart.—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Taylor claims Lee groped and kissed her and then forced his hand into her pants, penetrating her with his fingers.—
Nancy Dillon,
Rolling Stone,
20 Jan. 2026
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After literally years of groping around in the dark, Brazil do, at least, have the makings of a plan under Ancelotti.—
Jack Lang,
New York Times,
17 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The sort of challenge that has caused United to stumble in recent times.—
Graham Ruthven,
New York Times,
31 Jan. 2026
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Stocks had stumbled there in prior days after MSCI, an influential company in the investment industry that creates stock and other indexes, warned about market risks such as a lack of transparency.—
Stan Choe,
Fortune,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The blunder in the Supreme Court of Victoria state is another in a litany of mishaps AI has caused in justice systems around the world.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
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That was indicative of how Buffalo’s blunders proved costly.—
Hannah Keyser,
CNN Money,
18 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Duran booted a water bottle on his way down the tunnel while manager Unai Emery was enraged by Newcastle assistant Jason Tindall putting his finger to his lips and telling the Spaniard to be quiet.—
Jacob Tanswell,
New York Times,
22 Jan. 2026
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Following his legal trouble, Chacon was booted from his agency and lost out on a role in an upcoming movie, per Deadline.—
Raechal Shewfelt,
Entertainment Weekly,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Mamdani’s team learned to use the Post to its advantage in limited ways, posting screengrabs of New York Post headlines intended to upset conservative readers that the campaign thought made Mamdani look good.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
2 Feb. 2026
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Whether Justin takes home a Grammy (or more) tonight, his couple’s look with his other half was a winner.—
Irene Kim,
Vogue,
2 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Reviewers say that this model’s eco mode outputs just the right amount of heat without tripping your breaker.—
Julia Harrison,
Architectural Digest,
23 Jan. 2026
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The operators likely see green lights and stable voltage readings on their screens even as transformers are overloading and breakers are tripping in the physical world.—
Saman Zonouz,
The Conversation,
22 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fumble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fumble. Accessed 3 Feb. 2026.
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