as in muttering
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1
as in falling
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in struggling
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 shuffling
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 fumbling
to make a mistake
that network announcer rarely stumbles when he's on the air
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stumbling
Noel Murray, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
The victim was then seen stumbling backwards and sustained a visible mark on her neck, according to the sheriff's office.
—Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 16 Feb. 2026
Written like a field research journal, Emily Wilde is a clever and charming portrait of a scientist on a journey toward discovery, hard at work in the field and stumbling toward love, all at the same time.
—Brianne Kane, Scientific American, 13 Feb. 2026
Longtime collaborator Alex Lockett returns to direct the clip, an upstairs/downstairs concept which follows Antonoff on struggle street, stumbling into randoms and flapping about in the rain.
—Lars Brandle, Billboard, 11 Feb. 2026
Reports of stumbling, slipping on the ice or just the indignity of having to yield to a robot were among common complaints submitted, Robertson said.
—Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2026
The latest trailer finds Mario and Luigi stumbling upon the green lizard in a spooky cave.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Feb. 2026
Despite stumbling on a quad lutz jump and forgoing a quad axel for a triple, Malinin’s score of 200 points was enough to hold off a clean and graceful program by Japan’s Shun Sato for the overall gold.
—Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 8 Feb. 2026
In a video of the incident, McConnell, who was walking with a visibly stiff gait and relying on a person beside him for stability, can be seen stumbling to the ground toward the end of the woman's question and landing on his left side.
—Amy McCarthy, PEOPLE, 4 Feb. 2026
Verb
He’s saved by a drunken Ser Arlan, who comes stumbling into the alley and instinctively follows his knightly code to defend the innocent.
—Noel Murray, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
The victim was then seen stumbling backwards and sustained a visible mark on her neck, according to the sheriff's office.
—Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 16 Feb. 2026
Written like a field research journal, Emily Wilde is a clever and charming portrait of a scientist on a journey toward discovery, hard at work in the field and stumbling toward love, all at the same time.
—Brianne Kane, Scientific American, 13 Feb. 2026
Longtime collaborator Alex Lockett returns to direct the clip, an upstairs/downstairs concept which follows Antonoff on struggle street, stumbling into randoms and flapping about in the rain.
—Lars Brandle, Billboard, 11 Feb. 2026
Reports of stumbling, slipping on the ice or just the indignity of having to yield to a robot were among common complaints submitted, Robertson said.
—Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2026
The latest trailer finds Mario and Luigi stumbling upon the green lizard in a spooky cave.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Feb. 2026
Despite stumbling on a quad lutz jump and forgoing a quad axel for a triple, Malinin’s score of 200 points was enough to hold off a clean and graceful program by Japan’s Shun Sato for the overall gold.
—Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 8 Feb. 2026
In a video of the incident, McConnell, who was walking with a visibly stiff gait and relying on a person beside him for stability, can be seen stumbling to the ground toward the end of the woman's question and landing on his left side.
—Amy McCarthy, PEOPLE, 4 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stumbling
Verb
-
Be cautious of ice accumulating on power lines or tree branches, which can lead to snapping and falling hazards.—
Bay Area Weather Report,
Mercury News,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Try to find a place that will block blowing or falling debris.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
And don’t forget 26-year-old Ludvig Åberg, struggling so far but still a two-time Ryder Cup winner with multiple wins on tour.—
Brody Miller,
New York Times,
23 Feb. 2026
-
As the war in Ukraine enters its fourth year, Ukraine’s birth rate is collapsing, with increasing number of people struggling with fertility or putting off the decision to have children.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN Money,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Metcalf and Pullman are both wonderful in their shuffling ordinariness, reenacting long-obsolete parental dynamics with a kind of rueful, hopeful denial.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Bridgerton treats it as though every woman got multiples of their yearbook photo to hand around as headshots, and Benedict’s taking what would have been treasured personal heirlooms and just shuffling through them and tossing out anyone with the wrong hair color.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Gibson rushed for 1,000 yards in his second season, then suffered from fumbling issues over his final years with the Commanders.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
23 Feb. 2026
-
But Illinois is at risk of fumbling this opportunity.—
Susana A. Mendoza,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Evidence mounted that long-running global efforts to block nuclear proliferation were faltering.—
Prashant Rao,
semafor.com,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Letter writer kept cancer diagnosis private to avoid people’s reactions, but that plan is faltering as illness progresses.—
Carolyn Hax,
Washington Post,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Another thing that a lot of these jam band fans love is drugs — tripping, smoking weed, rolling on MDMA, doing peyote or ayahuasca, and eventually many of them loved smoking crack and shooting heroin.—
David Manheim,
Rolling Stone,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Shortly afterward, a southbound G train entering the station hit the frozen obstruction, tripping the train’s emergency brake.—
Evan Simko-Bednarski,
New York Daily News,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Yabusele started Monday and immediately racked up two blundering fouls in four minutes.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Our party walked single file to minimize the chance of blundering onto private property.—
Christine Peterson,
Outdoor Life,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Han will be posted up by the Milennium Falcon and/or Oga’s Cantina, Luke will be stomping his Chanel boots in the marketplace, and Darth Vader will be force-choking dads in Grumpy tees.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
14 Jan. 2026
-
Then there’s the people watching, from the tailgating to the communal divot stomping, full of dramatic sun dresses and hats with flourishes, seersucker suits and, yes, hats with flourishes.—
Eric Barton,
Sun Sentinel,
4 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stumbling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stumbling. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
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