scrabbled

verb

past tense of scrabble
1
as in climbed
to move (as up or over something) often with the help of the hands in holding or pulling we scrabbled up a sand dune to get a better view of the sea

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in fumbled
to search for something blindly or uncertainly he frantically scrabbled through the storage chest looking for the needed documents

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of scrabbled With the June 2 primary weeks away and many voters still undecided, candidates scrabbled for airtime and breakout moments during the chaotic 90-minute debate. — Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2026 The Eagles have scrabbled at multiple offensive schemes while leveraging the strength of their defense. — Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrabbled
  1. climbed
  2. fumbled
  3. scrambled
  4. looked
  5. clambered
Verb
  • The death toll following last week's unprecedented flash flood at the Nepal-Tibet border has climbed to 1,344, with an additional 4,996 people believed to still be missing as of Saturday, officials said.
    — Jon Haworth, ABC News, 5 Sep. 2026
  • Expedia said in June that searches using budget filters have climbed more than 1,200% compared with 12 months ago.
    — Alex Harring, CNBC, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of climbed
Verb
  • After Jordan fumbled away a screen pass, Maiava later found Mosley for that 68-yard score.
    — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2026
  • Balogun didn’t hurt his stock or his public image by walking away from Everton, a club that fumbled its way through another transfer window.
    — Paul Tenorio, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of fumbled
Verb
  • Airlines scrambled Wednesday to dig out from the backlog triggered by technical problems experienced by the United Kingdom's air traffic control system that has forced the cancellation of more than 2,000 flights.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Scientists have scrambled to investigate, hoping to prevent further deaths in a species that has been in decline for years—gray whales lost 35 percent of their population between 2020 and 2025.
    — Ainslie Cruickshank, Scientific American, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of scrambled
Verb
  • Two years later, when coached by New Zealander Warren Gatland, Wales learned that a haka was not technically over until any side looked away — and so began a tense 80-second stare-off between the two sides.
    — Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Extreme mountain climbing has never looked anything but miserable from the distance of a screening room, and The Other Side delivers mightily on all that scraping, straining, gasping toil.
    — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of looked
Verb
  • Readers will know, of course, that Joao Palhinha bundled in a late winner at Wolverhampton Wanderers, Spurs reduced the gap to two and then clambered over West Ham in the final weeks of the season.
    — Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • People have clambered into helicopters from roof terraces and been winched up from the mud left behind by the floodwater, videos posted by the Nepali Army show.
    — Billy Stockwell, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of clambered

Browse Nearby Words

scrabble
scrabbled
scrabbles
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Cite this Entry

“Scrabbled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrabbled. Accessed 14 Sep. 2026.

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