1
as in fell
to go down from an upright position suddenly and involuntarily
the bride stumbled on the altar steps and landed smack in the arms of the minister
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in struggled
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
stumbled twice while she was reciting the "Gettysburg Address"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in shuffled
to move heavily or clumsily
the tipsy revelers left the path and wearily stumbled through the tangled undergrowth
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in fumbled
to make a mistake
that network announcer rarely stumbles when he's on the air
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stumbled
Once seen as the Fox News for the next generation of conservatives, the Daily Wire has stumbled over the last several years.
—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
23 June 2026
Through a connection, Jobs stumbled upon what was then the computer animation division of Star Wars creator George Lucas’ production company Lucasfilm and was immediately impressed, wrote Walter Isaacson in his biography of the Apple cofounder.
—
Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez,
Fortune,
22 June 2026
The shop provided a third space for a small but tight-knit community that the Joneses stumbled into after selling figurines of dragons, skulls, mythical creatures at the Youth Fair and Redlands flea market.
—
Delia Rose Sauer,
Miami Herald,
22 June 2026
The artwork, the name of which has not been revealed, was stumbled on by police during a search conducted in the Île-de-France region.
—
Séraphine Roger,
Vanity Fair,
21 June 2026
Avila was crushed inside the Volkswagen, while Guevara allegedly stumbled to the Honda Accord, got inside, and drove off, according to court records.
—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
19 June 2026
When asked who played at Arrowhead Stadium, Comenencia stumbled for the name.
—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
19 June 2026
Strong starts are crucial to securing progression to the knockouts and the best possible passage, but Portugal stumbled out of the blocks on day seven — unlike England, Ghana and Colombia, who all won.
—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
17 June 2026
Because the 59-year-old MAGA actor has stumbled into a debate that’s been vexing DC fans for more than six decades.
—
Benjamin Svetkey,
HollywoodReporter,
16 June 2026
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
23 June 2026
Through a connection, Jobs stumbled upon what was then the computer animation division of Star Wars creator George Lucas’ production company Lucasfilm and was immediately impressed, wrote Walter Isaacson in his biography of the Apple cofounder.
—
Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez,
Fortune,
22 June 2026
The shop provided a third space for a small but tight-knit community that the Joneses stumbled into after selling figurines of dragons, skulls, mythical creatures at the Youth Fair and Redlands flea market.
—
Delia Rose Sauer,
Miami Herald,
22 June 2026
The artwork, the name of which has not been revealed, was stumbled on by police during a search conducted in the Île-de-France region.
—
Séraphine Roger,
Vanity Fair,
21 June 2026
Avila was crushed inside the Volkswagen, while Guevara allegedly stumbled to the Honda Accord, got inside, and drove off, according to court records.
—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
19 June 2026
When asked who played at Arrowhead Stadium, Comenencia stumbled for the name.
—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
19 June 2026
Strong starts are crucial to securing progression to the knockouts and the best possible passage, but Portugal stumbled out of the blocks on day seven — unlike England, Ghana and Colombia, who all won.
—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
17 June 2026
Because the 59-year-old MAGA actor has stumbled into a debate that’s been vexing DC fans for more than six decades.
—
Benjamin Svetkey,
HollywoodReporter,
16 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stumbled
Verb
-
Aalto University / Mahdi Asgari History is filled with stories of the great being felled by the puny.
-
And those are the lucky ones, who weren’t felled by late-season injuries and bumped from the tournament the way Brazil’s Rodrygo, Japan’s Kaoru Mitoma and Germany’s Serge Gnabry were.
Verb
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Additionally, both of those players have struggled to provide consistent impact as finishers at the rim and aren’t useful as shooters.
-
The Volkswagen Group has struggled with its internal software division (Cariad) for years.
Verb
-
After about 10 minutes of sitting frozen in place, the seven-year-old shuffled out of the room with his mother, sister and grandmother.
-
The outsize failings of the men in power demand a grand reimagining of the consequences of those failings, and Helen of Nowhere offers up, exhilaratingly and naughtily, a myth for the man who needs to be shuffled offstage one way or another.
Verb
-
Before that, Tampa Bay fumbled scoring opportunities in five of the first seven innings and stranded five overall.
-
After South Korea’s goalkeeper fumbled a ball, Luis Romo scored the goal that gave the Mexicans six points and pushed them to the top of the standings.
Verb
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On occasion, reporters quite literally tripped and fell over tripods and camera setups while the unfazed athletes answered a line of seemingly never-ending rapid-fire questions.
-
Pulisic left that game with an injury to his right leg after being tripped by Australian defender Jason Geria.
Verb
-
Rubio is the president’s top adviser on both national security and diplomacy at a moment when the United States has blundered into an unpopular war that appears to be a strategic catastrophe.
-
Padres fielders blundered in three of his outings.
Verb
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On Monday night, a 39-year-old man wearing a Spurs jersey was stomped and punched after Game 3 while walking down West 47th Street, about 15 blocks from the arena.
-
It's been 33 years since Jurassic Park first stomped into theaters, and blockbusters haven't been the same since.
Verb
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Only two failed transfers occurred, both involving extremely thin pieces that slipped from the chopsticks.
-
His approval rating on the economy slipped two points, to 30%, from April and his rating on inflation was also down two points, to 22%, while 19% approve of his handling of gas prices in the latest poll.
Cite this Entry
“Stumbled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stumbled. Accessed 27 Jun. 2026.
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