bungle

[buhng-guhl]

verb (used with object)

bungled, bungling 

1. to do clumsily and awkwardly; botch.

   He bungled the job.

   Synonyms: ruin, spoil, muddle, mismanage

verb (used without object)

bungled, bungling 

1. to perform or work clumsily or inadequately.

   He is a fool who bungles consistently.

noun

1. a bungling performance.

2. that which has been done clumsily or inadequately.

bungle

/ ˈbʌŋɡəl /

verb

1. (tr) to spoil (an operation) through clumsiness, incompetence, etc; botch

noun

1. a clumsy or unsuccessful performance or piece of work; mistake; botch

Other Word Forms

• bungling adjective
• bungler noun
• bunglingly adverb
• unbungling adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of bungle¹

First recorded in 1520–30; of uncertain origin

Word History and Origins

Origin of bungle¹

C16: perhaps of Scandinavian origin; compare dialect Swedish bangla to work without results

Example Sentences

A hit-and-run driver who struck and seriously hurt a road worker after a 130mph police chase tried to blame his ex-partner in a bungled cover-up before being caught out by a Ring doorbell.

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The Pirates were part of the centre-right government until they left the coalition over a bungled digitalisation scheme.

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When NPR interviewed Rich Luze, who oversees nutrition for the Sioux City Community School District in Iowa, he worried the government had bungled the way it ended the pandemic’s free meal benefits.

Read more on Salon

Aimee Betro failed at her mission to assassinate her long-distance lover's rival - but in the days after her bungled attack, she still believed she could cover her tracks and evade police.

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"I want the UK government to stop messing things up," he said, referring to what he called its "bungled" announcement regarding possible recognition of a Palestinian state.

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Related Words

• botch 
• err 
• flub 
• fudge 
• gum up 
• miscalculate 
• mishandle 
• mismanage 
• muff 
• screw up