1
as in climbed
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
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2
as in fumbled
to search for something blindly or uncertainly
he frantically scrabbled through the storage chest looking for the needed documents
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of scrabbled
The Eagles have scrabbled at multiple offensive schemes while leveraging the strength of their defense.
—
Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2026
Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrabbled
Verb
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Point Loma Nazarene’s women’s basketball team improved to 14-4 and climbed back on top of the PacWest Conference standings with a 10-2 mark after beating Azusa Pacific (80-55) and contender Vanguard (59-57) last week.—
Bill Center,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
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Silver and platinum prices have also climbed alongside gold, reflecting broader investor interest in hard assets.—
Brady Halbleib,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Payton fumbled on the second play from scrimmage, and the Patriots recovered at the Bears' 19-yard line.—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
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To do so, the Patriots must keep enough heat off Drake Maye, who has taken 10 sacks and fumbled six times in the playoffs.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The focus for many Republicans has centered on his gun, an extraordinary argument that has scrambled the nation’s gun debate and sparked pushback from gun rights advocates.—
Kacen Bayless,
Kansas City Star,
27 Jan. 2026
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Close friends Todd Spessert and Jason Young scrambled to see Kevin.—
Peter Van Sant,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Out of the bloodstains shone a pair of bright blue eyes, and a heart was beating under the pallid skin that looked several sizes too big.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
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For five years, detectives looked for Townsend.—
Jermont Terry,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
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At another point, a ranger waded through the mud of a mangrove forest and clambered into a mangrove to catch a bird for a blood sample, before doing the same trek in reverse to put it back.—
Luis Melecio-Zambrano,
Mercury News,
18 Jan. 2026
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But after the show’s debut, fans clambered for more.—
Emily Zemler,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scrabbled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrabbled. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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