as in to find
to come upon unexpectedly or by chance
stumbled on some old family photos when she was cleaning out a drawer
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stumble (on or onto)
Verb
-
Ukrainians, ever resilient, have found some ways to cope with the cold.—
Sophia Panych,
Allure,
24 Feb. 2026 -
Worshippers arriving for the day's first prayers found the damage and a smoldering fire that spewed black smoke across the entrance of the Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq Mosque in the town of Tell, near Nablus, and stained the ornate doorway.—
AREF TUFAHA,
Arkansas Online,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
They’re typically encountered at ports of entry by federal agents, and receive notices to appear in immigration court, usually in one to three years.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
22 Feb. 2026
-
The gold also caps off a four-year cycle during which Gu struggled with panic attacks and encountered online trolling in both the United States and China, where some citizens see her as a privileged interloper.—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
22 Feb. 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Stumble (on or onto).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stumble%20%28on%20or%20onto%29. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
