bumble

¹ American  

[buhm-buhl] / ˈbʌm bəl /

verb (used without object)

bumbled, bumbling

1. to bungle or blunder awkwardly; muddle.

   He somehow bumbled through two years of college.

2. to stumble or stagger.

3. to speak in a low, stuttering, halting manner; mumble.

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verb (used with object)

bumbled, bumbling

1. to do (something) clumsily; botch.

noun

1. an awkward blunder.

bumble ² American  

[buhm-buhl] / ˈbʌm bəl /

verb (used without object)

bumbled, bumbling

1. to make a buzzing, humming sound, as a bee.

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bumble ¹ British  

/ ˈbʌmbəl /

verb

1. to speak or do in a clumsy, muddled, or inefficient way

   he bumbled his way through his speech

2. (intr) to proceed unsteadily; stumble

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noun

1. a blunder or botch

bumble ² British  

/ ˈbʌmbəl /

verb

1. (intr) to make a humming sound

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Other Word Forms

• bumbler noun
• bumbling noun

Etymology

Origin of bumble¹

1525–35; perhaps blend of bungle and stumble

Origin of bumble²

1350–1400; Middle English bomblen, frequentative of bomben to boom, buzz; imitative

Example Sentences

He’s spent the months since demanding respect from the press while bumbling his way through scandal after scandal.

From Salon

“I’ve got it!” howls Pebble, who comes bumbling out of the exact wrong bush behind the marmot.

From Literature

In “Scavengers,” the mother-and-daughter odd couple are too bumbling to make any headway.

From The Wall Street Journal

The Steelers had bumbled into the decisive Week 18 contest by managing the impossible and losing to Shedeur Sanders and Cleveland the week before, extending Baltimore’s life.

From The Wall Street Journal

What consequential life experiences have I missed, taunting my eyeballs, indulging this social media imp turned experimental pugilist as he bumbles around the ring with has-beens and never-weres?

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• bobble
• bungle
• stumble