jumble
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to mix in a confused mass; put or throw together without order.
You've jumbled up all the cards.
- Antonyms:
- separate
-
to confuse mentally; muddle.
verb (used without object)
-
to be mixed together in a disorderly heap or mass.
-
to meet or come together confusedly.
noun
-
a mixed or disordered heap or mass.
a jumble of paper clips, rubber bands, and string.
-
a confused mixture; medley.
-
a state of confusion or disorder.
- Synonyms:
- chaos, muddle, mess, gallimaufry, farrago, hodgepodge
- Antonyms:
- order
-
Also jumbal a small, round, flat cake or cookie with a hole in the middle.
verb
-
to mingle (objects, papers, etc) in a state of disorder
-
(tr; usually passive) to remember in a confused form; muddle
noun
-
a disordered mass, state, etc
-
articles donated for a jumble sale
-
Also called: jumbal. a small thin cake, usually ring-shaped
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of jumble
1520–30; perhaps blend of joll to bump (now dial.) and tumble
Explanation
When you jumble something, you throw a bunch of items haphazardly together. For example, many people jumble many random things in a kitchen junk drawer. Use the verb jumble to describe what happens when you scramble or mix things up. Some kids, for example, jumble their Lego toys together in a big bin, while others like to sort the pieces by color or size. You can call the mix of items itself a jumble too. In the early 1500s, jumble meant "to move confusedly," and it was probably modeled on stumble. Later that century, it came to mean "mix or confuse."
Vocabulary lists containing jumble
Workshop 4, Part 2
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"The Death of the Hired Man" by Robert Frost
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Locomotion
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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.
“In order to keep my brain functioning,” 73-year-old Jairo Angulo of West L.A. wrote, “I play Wordle, complete the Jumble, do the Sudoku, KenKen and crossword puzzles daily.”
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 11, 2023
Jumble Coffee Co. owners joined forces with the owners of Dimensional Brewing Co. to announce they will open two new businesses on Thunder Valley Drive in Peosta.
From Washington Times • Apr. 19, 2021
For the past year, she also has been running Tribune Content Agency, overseeing a syndication and licensing business that distributes everything from news stories and columnists to Jumble, serving 1,200 media clients worldwide.
From Chicago Tribune • Jan. 28, 2015
The space one has a whole new look to it. richard barrett My kids love the Jumble Jungle app on the iPad.
From Time • Dec. 25, 2012
Jumble of shoes and boots and shopping bags by the door.
From "The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle" by Leslie Connor
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.
