bumbling
Americanadjective
-
liable to make awkward blunders.
a bumbling mechanic.
-
clumsily incompetent or ineffectual.
bumbling diplomacy.
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of bumbling
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"The island would not be the same without him. He's still bumbling, still a wee bit getting the wrong end of the stick quite a lot."
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
Even George W. Bush — the bumbling boardwalk caricature that he is — could deliver a State of the Union address without going off-prompter.
From Salon • Mar. 11, 2026
You’re going to get a refresh of the QB’s bumbling history against the Patriots—including the miserable night with the Jets when he complained he was “seeing ghosts”—but this dude isn’t that dude.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 26, 2026
Lise has run-ins with other passengers aboard her flight and, once at her destination, befriends a bumbling, dotty widow.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026
They weren’t bumbling like the ones on the stage.
From "The Strangers" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
