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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of stumbled
Shares stumbled last week on news about job openings in December hitting their lowest level in five years as investors tried to assess the health of the economy and figure out whether to cash in on pricey stocks.
—
John Towfighi, CNN Money, 11 Feb. 2026
Both the Bobcats and Blue Devils have stumbled, and Yale is in a dogfight in the Ivy League.
—Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 11 Feb. 2026
Despite multiple searches, on foot and by helicopter, Sands’ whereabouts were a mystery for five months, until hikers stumbled across his remains in June.
—Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 10 Feb. 2026
Disappointing Promises But before his plans could take hold, Chriss stumbled publicly.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
Dumb luck certainly did favor the bold that night, as Dallas stumbled into Cooper Flagg despite having been a Play-In Tournament team.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 6 Feb. 2026
Even the high-flying Colorado Avalanche, who were once poised to threaten the NHL record for points in a season, have stumbled into the break, going 4-5-1 in their last 10.
—Lia Assimakopoulos, Dallas Morning News, 5 Feb. 2026
Goodwill stumbled at the 19th hurdle after getting stuck in the mud and knocked Anne to the ground, who suffered a concussion.
—Stefania Conrieri, Vanity Fair, 5 Feb. 2026
The Predators again stumbled out of the gates this season before finding their footing to get back in the playoff race.
—Pierre Lebrun, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026
John Towfighi, CNN Money, 11 Feb. 2026
Both the Bobcats and Blue Devils have stumbled, and Yale is in a dogfight in the Ivy League.
—Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 11 Feb. 2026
Despite multiple searches, on foot and by helicopter, Sands’ whereabouts were a mystery for five months, until hikers stumbled across his remains in June.
—Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 10 Feb. 2026
Disappointing Promises But before his plans could take hold, Chriss stumbled publicly.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
Dumb luck certainly did favor the bold that night, as Dallas stumbled into Cooper Flagg despite having been a Play-In Tournament team.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 6 Feb. 2026
Even the high-flying Colorado Avalanche, who were once poised to threaten the NHL record for points in a season, have stumbled into the break, going 4-5-1 in their last 10.
—Lia Assimakopoulos, Dallas Morning News, 5 Feb. 2026
Goodwill stumbled at the 19th hurdle after getting stuck in the mud and knocked Anne to the ground, who suffered a concussion.
—Stefania Conrieri, Vanity Fair, 5 Feb. 2026
The Predators again stumbled out of the gates this season before finding their footing to get back in the playoff race.
—Pierre Lebrun, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stumbled
Verb
-
Cortina Mayor Gianluca Lorenzi received death threats after centuries-old trees were felled to make way for a $131 million bobsledding track.—
The Week US,
TheWeek,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Afterward, Agnes and I were felled by the kind of hunger that overtakes only those who have exerted themselves in cold weather.—
Boris Fishman,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The results showed that while standard chemical leaching struggled without gravity to move fluids, the microbes didn’t blink.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Feb. 2026
-
The passenger was able to exit the truck while the suspect, still armed with the knife, struggled with the driver.—
Rick Sobey,
Boston Herald,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
That means there aren’t going to be just a few chairs shuffled around; my suspicion is much of the roster likely will be overhauled in the next few years.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
13 Feb. 2026
-
On Thursday afternoon, about 300 people in a mix of puffer coats and fleeces shuffled in place on a line that snaked south along Seventh Avenue to West 10th Street, wrapped around Julius’ and circled back — an Ouroborous.—
Adriane Quinlan,
Curbed,
12 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In turn, the Heat fumbled it away.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Feb. 2026
-
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 real estate firm Z&L Properties.—
George Avalos,
Mercury News,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Fighting Illini coach Brad Underwood asked officials to review whether Fears intentionally tripped David Mirkovic after stopping in front of him.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
8 Feb. 2026
-
May was right that Fears tripped Lendeborg, a dirty play that should have resulted in a flagrant foul.—
Joe Rexrode,
New York Times,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The first trailer for this macho survival flick just stomped onto the internet last week with a gung-ho spirit and guns blazing.—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
9 Feb. 2026
-
The Seattle Seahawks stomped a mud hole in the New England Patriots.—
Prince J. Grimes,
USA Today,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Mission slipped into 2025 because ULA needed more Vulcan rocket hardware beyond Cert-2 and the two USSF missions that took priority over the Dream Chaser flight.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
13 Feb. 2026
-
French wine and spirits exports have slipped from being traditionally France’s second-largest export sector to third, behind aerospace and cosmetics, as trade tensions intensified.—
Reuters 9 hr ago,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Robinhood shares tumbled 10% after the fintech app missed fourth-quarter revenue estimates.—
Jeff Marks,
CNBC,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Vizcaino tumbled from his vehicle and allegedly attempted to carjack multiple nearby vehicles while wielding a knife.—
Rick Sobey,
Boston Herald,
11 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stumbled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stumbled. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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