as in hummed
to fly, turn, or move rapidly with a fluttering or vibratory sound
a fly bumbling around the room while we were trying to sleep
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in fumbled
to make or do (something) in a clumsy or unskillful way
accused the White House staff of bumbling the announcement of the replacement for the cabinet post
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stumbled
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
I sort of bumbled through the dance number, hoping that it would soon end
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in chatted
to speak rapidly, inarticulately, and usually unintelligibly
overcome with stage fright, I could only bumble through the speech
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 bumbled
Andy McCullough, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
After the Knicks bumbled away Game 1 and eventually lost the series in six contests, New York fired former Coach of the Year Tom Thibodeau after five largely successful seasons.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
The same year that Zipf secured his measure of posthumous fame, Harvard’s football team bumbled its way to a 1-8 record.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Which is a shame because Cuoco’s chemistry with on-screen husband Chris Messina was entertaining, especially as the couple bumbled their way through the true crime craze comedy.
—Hunter Ingram, Variety, 12 Aug. 2025
Verb
As the Rockies bumbled through the 2025 season, The Athletic asked rival executives about hypothetical ways to fix the franchise.
—Andy McCullough, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
After the Knicks bumbled away Game 1 and eventually lost the series in six contests, New York fired former Coach of the Year Tom Thibodeau after five largely successful seasons.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
The same year that Zipf secured his measure of posthumous fame, Harvard’s football team bumbled its way to a 1-8 record.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Which is a shame because Cuoco’s chemistry with on-screen husband Chris Messina was entertaining, especially as the couple bumbled their way through the true crime craze comedy.
—Hunter Ingram, Variety, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bumbled
Verb
-
Traffic hummed and whined on I-85.—
Thomas Lake,
AJC.com,
13 May 2026
-
To the right hummed Interstate 190; beyond the highway, the Niagara River; beyond the river, Canada.—
Dan Barry,
New York Times,
12 May 2026
Verb
-
The attempt to create a viable and vibrant residential hub arrives after years of neglect and fumbled strategies by the prior owner, an affiliate of Z&L Properties.—
George Avalos,
Mercury News,
19 May 2026
-
The city fumbled the rollout of the parks bond and now the residents are paying — in both money and exasperation, Inserra noted.—
Susannah Bryan,
Sun Sentinel,
14 May 2026
Verb
-
Investigators suspect 16-year-old Star Grant and a 28-year-old accomplice killed the girl’s parents and grandmother on May 1 – six days before deputies stumbled onto the crime during a May 7 welfare check, the warrant states.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
13 May 2026
-
The chain had steady growth in 2024, but seems to have stumbled in California.—
Itzel Luna,
Los Angeles Times,
12 May 2026
Verb
-
Additionally, business passengers tend to be low maintenance, at least according to an Alaska Airlines flight attendant who chatted with T+L via email.—
Joey Skladany,
Travel + Leisure,
15 May 2026
-
Staffers in the front office smoked, gabbed on the phone, and chatted with the illustrators and couriers stopping by the third-floor walk-up to drop off portfolios.—
Anne Kadet,
Curbed,
15 May 2026
Verb
-
Outside buzzed the controversial Court Street bike lane, the subject of a recent lawsuit which Dornagon covered closely.—
Kyle Chayka,
New Yorker,
14 May 2026
-
Altadena buzzed with the sound of construction in late April.—
Aarne Heikkila,
NBC news,
14 May 2026
Verb
-
Authorities said a tractor-trailer car hauler blew a tire while traveling eastbound on I-10 near Valencia Road, causing the truck to hit a guardrail, roll into the median and burst into flames, CBS affiliate KOLD reported.—
Abigail Adams,
PEOPLE,
18 May 2026
-
The smoke from the island fire blew east to the California coast and will be impacting air quality early this week, the National Weather Service in San Diego reported.—
Eric Mack,
FOXNews.com,
18 May 2026
Verb
-
In April, Jeremy Doku and Antoine Semenyo proved to be an effective outlet as Chelsea struggled to cope with their pace.—
Cerys Jones,
New York Times,
13 May 2026
-
During her weekslong trial, friends of Richinses described how the couple had moments of material strife and struggled with infidelity.—
Minyvonne Burke,
NBC news,
13 May 2026
Verb
-
While much of the Dodgers’ offense sputtered on this homestand, Hernández went 9-for-20 with three doubles.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
15 May 2026
-
The offense sputtered again in the final four games of the road trip, with the Mets scoring only seven runs in four games against the Rockies and Diamondbacks.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
11 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bumbled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bumbled. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
