scrabbling

verb

present participle of scrabble
1
as in climbing
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

Relevance
2
as in fumbling
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 scrabbling The retaliation works, and soon Cole and his men are marching on foot, scrabbling their way through thickets and swamps. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026 In addition, its luxury pricing will turn off many hobbyists and content creators who are scrabbling to make ends meet. — Jim Fisher, PC Magazine, 25 June 2026 Imagine combat choreographed by ants, swarms of elbows and legs scrabbling to emerge victorious. — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2026 The actress and producer has had great success in recent years, turning her talents to working behind the scenes of comedies about young people scrabbling their way through life. — Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 2 June 2026 In the new South, one scrabbling to industrialize, business owners could now hire unpaid labor through the penal system. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 26 Apr. 2026 That left the administration scrabbling for other ways to reimpose duties that were struck down. — Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 12 Mar. 2026 Next went Marshall Allen, hands on his sax like feral scrabbling mice. — Literary Hub, 13 Feb. 2026 This left the ruling Labour Party scrabbling. — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 26 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrabbling
  1. climbing
  2. fumbling
  3. scrambling
  4. looking
  5. clambering
  6. reaching
Verb
  • And as parents prep to send their kids back to school, cases are climbing in Pennsylvania, according to state data.
    — Finch Walker, USA Today, 12 Aug. 2026
  • While viewership has been steadily climbing on several Peacock and Bravo properties, 2026 was the year where the reality TV cup runneth over.
    — Mia Galuppo, HollywoodReporter, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of climbing
Verb
  • Most of the world was fumbling and scared, and Fauci seemed to have some idea of what to do.
    — Amy Davidson Sorkin, New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2026
  • Achane, the Miami Dolphins’ starting tailback, was referring to Ollie Gordon II fumbling the ball away in Wednesday practice, the team’s first of training camp.
    — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 30 July 2026
Definition of fumbling
Verb
  • Video captured in June showed Russian soldiers scrambling to respond to one attack by firing off man portable air defense systems (MANPADS) on a busy highway.
    — Lauren Kent, CNN Money, 9 Aug. 2026
  • After days of anticipation about whether this 'NIL Bill' would actually be taken up for a vote, Senate aides were scrambling early Saturday morning to make their way back to the Capitol.
    — Trey Wallace OutKick, FOXNews.com, 8 Aug. 2026
Definition of scrambling
Verb
  • Enzo Fernandez is looking more likely to stay at this stage after months of transfer speculation, and Chelsea are a stronger team with him in the line-up.
    — Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Lancôme’s Teint Idôle Ultra Wear All Over Concealer offers buildable, natural-looking coverage that can camouflage melasma, sunspots, and other hyperpigmentation without masking your skin entirely.
    — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of looking
Verb
  • That might include debris left behind or other damages like cars dented from scores of teens clambering over them while fleeing police.
    — Safiyah Riddle, Fortune, 25 July 2026
  • Video on state broadcaster CCTV showed the students, wearing bright orange life vests, clambering onto boats that took them away from the surreal scene of school buildings rising out of a lake of muddy water.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 July 2026
Definition of clambering
Verb
  • John Koetsier Global humanoid robot shipments jumped 272% year-over-year in the first half of 2026, reaching 19,100 units, according to a new report from Smart Analytics Global.
    — John Koetsier, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The back-and-forth suggested the two sides were no closer to reaching an agreement that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
    — Kevin Liptak, CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of reaching

Browse Nearby Words

scrabbles
scrabbling
scrag
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Scrabbling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrabbling. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on scrabbling

Nglish: Translation of scrabbling for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All