flounder
1 Americanverb (used without object)
-
flounders,
present (3rd person singular)
-
floundered,
past participle, past
-
floundering
present participle
-
to struggle with stumbling or plunging movements (usually followed by about, along, on, through, etc.).
He saw the child floundering about in the water.
-
to struggle clumsily or helplessly.
He floundered helplessly on the first day of his new job.
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to be in imminent danger of failure.
The negotiations floundered primarily on the question of extending regional autonomy.
noun
-
flounder,
plural
-
flounders
plural
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a European, marine flatfish, Platichthys flesus, used for food.
-
any of numerous similar or closely related non-European flatfishes.
-
any flatfish other than soles.
verb
-
to struggle; to move with difficulty, as in mud
-
to behave awkwardly; make mistakes
noun
noun
-
Also called: fluke. a European flatfish, Platichthys flesus having a greyish-brown body covered with prickly scales: family Pleuronectidae : an important food fish
-
any flatfish of the families Bothidae (turbot, etc) and Pleuronectidae (plaice, halibut, sand dab, etc)
Usage
Flounder is sometimes wrongly used where founder is meant: the project foundered (not floundered ) because of a lack of funds
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
floundersimple
-
flounderssimple
-
have flounderedperfect
-
has flounderedperfect
-
am flounderingprogressive
-
are flounderingprogressive
-
is flounderingprogressive
-
have been flounderingperfect progressive
-
has been flounderingperfect progressive
Past
-
flounderedsimple
-
had flounderedperfect
-
was flounderingprogressive
-
were flounderingprogressive
-
had been flounderingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of flounder1
First recorded in 1570–80; perhaps blend of flounce 1 and founder 2
Origin of flounder2
1400–50; late Middle English < Anglo-French floundre < Scandinavian; compare Norwegian flundra
Explanation
A flounder is a flat fish with both eyes on one side of its head; and, as a verb, to flounder is to wobble around like a fish out of water. To flounder is to be unsteady or uncertain. It's probably from the Dutch word flodderen, "to flop about," or it's a mix of founder ("to fail") and blunder ("do something clumsy"). If you flounder in the ocean, you need a surfer dude to scoop you up. You don't have to be in water, though; you can flounder any time you're a little wobbly — like after a long hike or during the last hour of the SATs. Either way, when you flounder, you wish you were a flat fish at the bottom of the sea.
Vocabulary lists containing flounder
List 2
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"The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell
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A Vocabulary Bestiary: Animals That Behave as Verbs
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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.
See Examples For:
I tipped Spain to beat France but still did not expect such a flat performance and their star-studded frontline to flounder as badly as they did.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
“The Little Sister” grows even more intriguing once the love affair runs aground, forcing Fatima to flounder in her heartache.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
As for the stuffed flounder, he said those staffers were returning from a work conference and could spend their per-diem food allowance as they wished.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
The outlook for younger workers could flounder if the effects of the recent oil shock lead to a pullback in discretionary spending.
From Barron's ● May 5, 2026
Then as now, the Northwest Coast, thick with fruit and fruits de mer, was a gatherer’s paradise: wild strawberries, wild blueberries, soapberries, huckleberries, thimbleberries, salmonberries; clams, cockles, mussels, oysters; flounder, hake, salmon.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Speaking broadly, TJ says the trendiness of the genre “is a little annoying because people are like, ‘I hate all country music,’ until their career flounders and suddenly they do a country record.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
As Target flounders, some competitors are growing fast.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 3, 2026
Evergrande's offshore bondholders are expected to sharpen their focus on offshore assets as the developer's debt restructuring plan flounders with the founder now being investigated over suspected "illegal crimes".
From Reuters ● Sep. 29, 2023
Haddock are caught by the same fishers who target other bottom-dwelling groundfish species such as cod, pollock and flounders.
From Seattle Times ● May 15, 2023
Old platter-foot Doxology was daintily nibbling hay from the manger with lips like two flounders.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
After the cancellation of “The Twilight Zone,” Serling floundered.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Plus, more than one, external US company working in this space has floundered in recent years, external.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
Attempts at diplomacy have floundered as fighting escalates on several fronts across Africa's third-largest country.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
Harry had designs on Netflix nature documentaries, but non-royal-related shows and movies floundered, and their Archewell production office experienced a significant turnover in staff.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
I glared at him as he floundered, but I floundered, too; I couldn’t think of what to do next.
From "Made You Up" by Francesca Zappia
They needed health insurance—so Bauers begrudgingly decided to give his floundering athletic career one last chance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
It doesn’t help that you two were hired together and you’ve clearly thrived while she seems to be floundering.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
He was the emotionally tortured and volatile chef who left behind a rising career in Michelin-starred restaurants to return to Chicago, his hometown, to run his recently deceased brother’s floundering sandwich joint.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
Crucially, the firm also is bullish on Intel’s foundry business, which was seen as a floundering effort as recently as last year.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
They left the protection of the convoy and headed back toward the floundering little vessels.
From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
