bumbling

American  

[buhm-bling] / ˈbʌm blɪŋ /

adjective

1. liable to make awkward blunders.

   a bumbling mechanic.

2. clumsily incompetent or ineffectual.

   bumbling diplomacy.

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noun

1. the act or practice of making blunders.

   The bumbling of their officers cost them the battle.

Other Word Forms

• bumblingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of bumbling

First recorded in 1525–35; bumble ¹ + -ing ²

Example Sentences

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

From The Wall Street Journal

His performance in office has been anything but impressive, with stories of his bumbling the early days of the Charlie Kirk investigation and his mishandling of the Epstein files.

From Salon

Brilliant but frequently misunderstood, George is dismissed by one potential suspect as “a bumbling, disorganized eccentric.”

From The Wall Street Journal

That was the path he had chosen: to die to all who knew him, and to all he knew—his devoted wife, his bumbling, nearsighted son, his palatial home, his vast fortune.

From Literature

He says he feels like he's the "bumbling buffoon" in the "walled garden that is traditional publishing" and that he's committed a kind of "literary heist".

From BBC

Related Words

• inept